United open talks with agents of “enormously underrated” midfielder after agreeing two deals – Fabrizio Romano

Manchester United have wrapped up two midfield deals this week, but the club’s recruitment team are not resting.  With the arrivals of Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos, United now have two midfielders who excel at breaking lines with their passing. The Red Devils entered the summer transfer window aiming to bring in three midfielders, and they have already identified the profile of their next midfield signing. Manchester United approach Manu Kone’s camp On Monday, The Athletic’s David Ornstein suggested that Manchester United will target midfielders with “legs” to complement Kobbie Mainoo and the two new arrivals. Now, according to Fabrizio Romano, United are “reaching out” to the agents of defensive midfielders after securing Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos. “Manu Kone among players being mentioned in internal talks and with initial approach on player side; not the only one,” Romano wrote on X. Speaking on his YouTube channel, the Italian journalist revealed that United “made a call to the agents of” Kone. The AS Roma midfielder, who has been described as “enormously underrated”, is thought to be one of the players Jason Wilcox and company appreciate. Manu Kone could be a great addition at Manchester United Manu Kone emerged as one of France’s most effective players at the World Cup. He filled in for the injured Aurelien Tchouameni against Paraguay and Morocco during the knockout stages.  The 6’1″ midfield dynamo did not let Les Bleus miss Tchouameni’s imposing presence ahead of the backline. Furthermore, in possession, he arguably performed better than the Real Madrid star. Manu Kone Serie A stats: 2025/26 Season Appearances29 Minutes per game85 Touches61.4 Key passes0.9 Accurate passes42.7 Interceptions 0.6 Tackles 1.7 Source: Sofascore Kone has three years left on his contract in Rome, but the Giallorossi could seemingly be forced into a sale due to financial reasons. It has been suggested that it would take at least £47 million to bring the Serie A outfit to the negotiating table. Meanwhile, Romano believes United have more defensive midfielders on their list of targets. Featured image Paolo Bruno 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 Vishal Singh Vishal has worked in the football media industry for over six years, planning, writing, and editing content for several major outlets, including North Star Network. Vishal has a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Delhi University. Currently a writer at The Peoples Person, he covers Manchester United — a club he has been religiously following and supporting since 2012. Vishal also manages a leading MUFC fan page, The Red Devils, on Facebook with over a million likes. Big fan of ball-playing centre-backs and Harry Maguire’s knee-slide celebration!