Mourinho turns supervillain with devious plan to derail United’s £43m pursuit of midfield monster – report

Jose Mourinho is about to block one of Manchester United’s most anticipated midfield transfers this summer. With plans to remake their engine room, The 20-time English champions have set their sights on some of the finest midfielders in Europe. One of them is Sporting CP’s Morten Hjulmand. The Danish midfielder is establishing himself as the number six that top clubs crave in their desire to establish control and dominance in the centre of the park. Highly intelligent, physical, and tactically disciplined, Hjulmand anchors the midfield by combining elite ball-winning, excellent positional awareness, and precise passing to dictate the tempo of the game, which is exactly what Manchester United crave in a Casemiro heir. INEOS know that, which is why behind-the-scenes reports suggest they are pushing to sign him. However, as they look to bring him to Manchester, complications are emerging. Competition for Morten Hjulmand Clubs are keen on derailing United’s transfer plans. First, it was Arsenal; now, a report from Spain suggests Real Madrid have entered the Hjulmand race. Mourinho request Apparently, Jose Mourinho wants the Sporting CP captain as his first signing back at the Bernabeu. As per Cope, “Miguel Ángel Díaz says that José Mourinho has asked Real Madrid to sign Morten Hjulmand, the Danish midfielder from Sporting Lisbon, for whom the Portuguese club would demand around €50 million.” Real Madrid complicate move Madrid forcing themselves into the Hjulmand transfer race changes everything. The Los Blancos will naturally do whatever it takes to please their new manager, and that desperation to win this deal, combined with the club’s undeniable appeal, massively hurts the Red Devils’ chances of landing Hjulmand. Hopefully, Michael Carrick can sell the United project to the midfielder, who may then be tempted to join a club where he would play under someone who was once one of the best in his position. Featured image Francesco Pecoraro via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Daniel Onguko Dan is a writer with The Peoples Person, an avid Manchester United fan whose passion for the Red Devils evolved into writing about them. He was introduced to United back in 2008, and his love for the club has continued to grow ever since. Like every other United fan, he believes the club will soon return to its rightful place and strives to reflect that belief in his writing. While he has also written about other Premier League sides, including Arsenal for Just Arsenal and The Arsenal Analysis Blogspot, Dan lives and breathes Manchester United.