United’s interest cleverly exploited to get rival midfielder lucrative new deal at current club – report

Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim is far from pleased with the midfield options at his disposal and has been forced to play creative outlet Bruno Fernandes in a deep-lying playmaker position as a result.

Casemiro is expected to depart alongside Christian Eriksen while Kobbie Mainoo’s future also remains up in the air due to contract talks stalling.

Which means Amorim needs someone to come in who can partner Manuel Ugarte in the middle of the park for the skipper to move back to his preferred position.

Surprisingly, the Red Devils were linked with a shock move for Newcastle’s Sean Longstaff, years after former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer originally tried to sign him for the Old Trafford side.

Surprise Longstaff interest

The Englishman’s contract ends in 2026 and it would not have cost INEOS too much to land the 27-year-old. But it certainly looked like a strange deal on paper given Longstaff’s form this season.

He has started only 12 games this season for the Magpies, which shows Eddie Howe wants to move on from him which is why Newcastle want him gone in the summer as they look to recoup a fee from his sale.

But Teamtalk have now revealed that the midfielder wants to stay at St James’ Park and sign a contract extension. In all probability, his agent is using United’s name to try and get his client a new and more lucrative deal.

“With funds tight and the club carefully looking to stay within the Premier League’s strict Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), the days of multiple marquee signings at Old Trafford look to be over.

“To that end, Ratcliffe would be happy should United go shopping for some so-called lesser lights and between their transfer committee, the club is understood to have identified several targets who could be able to move for cut-price fees this summer and whom fall out of contract in summer 2026.

“One man who fits exactly into that category and ticks all the boxes for United in Longstaff, with the midfielder’s deal due to expire at St James’ Park just over 15 months from now.

He wants to stay at Newcastle

“And with no plans currently on Tyneside to offer him a new deal, it is confirmed by sources that the 27-year-old has been made available for transfer this summer and with the Magpies eager to collect a fee for him while they can.

“Despite that, sources have also informed us that Longstaff’s preference is to remain at St James’ Park this summer and the player remains in favour of signing an extension with his hometown club.”

While the Newcastle star brings energy to the midfield, his other skillsets are rather limited and a move would have made more sense last summer when he was showing some form.

The Magpies will also look to fleece United given the tensions between both sets of owners after what happened with Dan Ashworth last summer. The 20-time English league champions are better served looking elsewhere. Surely they can do better than Longstaff.

Feature image George Wood via Getty Images

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