Manchester United have been given the green light to sign one of their “main targets” for next season to replace one of the five players shamed by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
In a series of interviews earlier this week, as well as spouting a load of nonsense, Ratcliffe named five players the club is still paying for despite them being signed by the previous regime, just ahead of claiming a number of them are “overpaid or not good enough”.
Ratcliffe told BBC Sport: “If you look at the players we are buying this summer, that we didn’t buy, we’re buying Antony, we’re buying Casemiro, we’re buying [Andre] Onana, we’re buying [Rasmus] Hojlund, we’re buying [Jadon] Sancho. These are all things from the past, whether we like it or not, we’ve inherited those things and have to sort that out.
“For Sancho, who now plays for Chelsea and we pay half his wages, we’re paying £17m to buy him in the summer.”
When asked whether he was suggesting those players were not good enough for Manchester United, he added: “Some are not good enough and some probably are overpaid, but for us to mould the squad that we are fully responsible for, and accountable for, will take time.
“We’ve got this period of transformation where we move from the past to the future.
“There are some great players in the squad as we know, the captain is a fabulous footballer. We definitely need Bruno, he’s a fantastic footballer.”
Onana has been criticised more than most since his £47m move to United in the summer of 2023, and Fichajes now claim the United bosses are looking to replace him with Atletico’s Jan Oblak.
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The Slovenian was the losing goalkeeper in the penalty shootout defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League this week, and hardly covered himself in glory, but as one of new sporting director Andrea Berta’s top ten signings he’s has proven himself to be one of the best ‘keepers in the world in the last decade.
It’s claimed ‘everything indicates Oblak will seek a change of scenery’ at the end of the season and although United will face competition the report claims they’re ‘better positioned’ to secure his signing, with €30m thought to be enough.
The report states:
‘The interest in the Slovenian is not exclusive to United. Manchester City also valued his incorporation as a possible replacement for Ederson, although in Old Trafford they seem to be better positioned to close their contract. The “Red Devils” want to rebuild their squad with top-level players and consider that Oblak can be a key piece in their sporting project.
‘Despite the fact that Atlético has a contract with its goalkeeper until 2028, the mattress board would not put obstacles in his departure as long as his economic demands are met. There is talk of a minimum amount of 30 million euros to finalize the operation, an amount that can be assumed for a club with the financial power of United.
‘With the summer market getting closer and closer, everything indicates that Atlético de Madrid’s goal could undergo a significant change and that Oblak’s fate will be in the English league.’
