Manchester United are hunting for midfield reinforcements after addressing their problems in defence and attack. They have signed Leny Yoro, Joshua Zirkzee, Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs de Ligt thus far to boost the squad that was ravaged by injuries last season and finished eighth in the Premier League.
The Red Devils are desperate to sign a holding midfielder before the summer transfer window slams shut. Manuel Ugarte has been their top target but Paris Saint-Germain’s reluctance to lower the price has led to a potential deal hit an impasse. As a result, the Premier League giants have started scouring the market for Ugarte’s alternatives.
Manchester United are reportedly now in constant talks with the representatives of Atalanta midfielder Ederson over a possible swoop. They are among several clubs that have enquired about Ederson’s availability. Aston Villa and Juventus are also keen on the Brazilian, while Atletico Madrid have seen a £38m bid rejected by Atalanta as they value him at around £51m.
Atalanta are fighting against all odds to keep hold of Ederson amid growing interest from clubs across Europe. The 25-year-old was one of the revelations for La Dea last season, bagging seven goals and an assist in 53 games across all competitions. The Brazil international played a chief role in helping Gian Piero Gasperini’s side lift the Europa League trophy.
Ederson’s solid performances in an Atalanta shirt led to him being called up to the Brazil squad for the summer’s Copa America, although he barely got any chances to showcase his talent. That hasn’t hurt his stock as the midfielder continues to be heavily linked with an exit from the Bergamo-based outfit.
Manchester United need a long-term replacement for Casemiro
Manchester United started the new Premier League season on a winning note on Friday night, beating Fulham 1-0 at Old Trafford. Casemiro was one of the stars of the show, helping Erik ten Hag’s side enjoy a positive start to the new campaign.
There has been a lot of speculation surrounding the future of Casemiro at Old Trafford since the end of last season. After an excellent debut season that saw him help Man United finish third in the Premier League and win the Carabao Cup, the Brazilian defensive midfielder looked a pale shadow of himself this past campaign. Injuries hampered his rhythm, and when he recovered from those and returned, the 32-year-old looked out of depth, made errors and bad judgements in and out of possession.
While Casemiro rolled back the years with his performance against Fulham, INEOS still need to go out and buy a defensive midfielder who can be the decorated South American’s long-term replacement. If the club has identified Ederson as an alternative to Ugarte, they could face a struggle to lure him away from Bergamo as Atalanta are doing everything possible to keep hold of him for another year.
I am Rohan Sengupta from one of the busiest cities in India, Mumbai. A Journalism graduate with a keen interest in sports, football is something I simply cannot live without and writing, discussing and analyzing the game is what I do 24*7.
