Man Utd have already agreed personal terms to sign Tchouameni 2.0 for £50m
Has this season been the perfect, much-needed season for Manchester United? Or will a top-five finish at the end mean little before another setback in the coming term?
Everything will be decided, although it is clear that INEOS are facing a very important summer, both in terms of naming the next permanent manager and in terms of strengthening the team that is improving, but depleted at Old Trafford.
As the defeat to Leeds United showed, remove a few key cogs and the machine just stopped working, the Red Devils suffered a major setback when the unfortunate Manuel Ugarte entered the field.
|
Ugarte – 25/26 PL starts |
|
|---|---|
|
The opponent |
The result |
|
Leeds (H) |
1-2 (L) |
|
Burnley (A) |
2-2 (D) |
|
Leeds (A) |
1-1 (D) |
|
Wolves (H) |
1-1 (D) |
|
Newcastle (H) |
1-0 (W)) |
|
Villa (A) |
2-1 (L) |
|
Brentford (A) |
3-1 (L) |
|
Man City (A) |
3-0 (L) |
The Uruguayan’s last one win started in all competitions is simply not enough, and a new, top-quality midfielder will be a necessity, with Casemiro also on the way this summer.
Man Utd have already agreed personal terms with the £50m midfielder
Most of 2026 is dominated by talk of Elliot Anderson or Sandro Tonali ending up in Manchester, although this week, it was reported that Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni is also on the INEOS summer shortlist.
Tipped to replace Casemiro at the Bernabeu in 2022, the Frenchman could once again replace the former Madrid man at Old Trafford, although he has been a regular fixture for Los Blancos again this season.
As noted by The Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell, the 26-year-old has been ‘discussed’ by United in recruitment meetings, although it remains to be seen whether the LaLiga side will come in, amid hopes that Tchouameni could sign a new deal instead.
As Whitwell notes, the former Monaco man is just one of many on the shortlist, with Brighton and Hove Albion’s Carlos Baleba also under consideration, having been keen to leave last summer.
Indeed, Whitwell revealed that personal terms were ‘broadly agreed’ with the Cameroonian, although Tony Bloom’s £100m and asking price seemed unreasonable.
United are now hopeful that a fee of close to £50m can do the job, although the 22-year-old is said to be in the low end of their target for the midfielder.
Why Baleba would be a perfect alternative to Tchouameni
With Kobbie Mainoo – who did his “best” work under Michael Carrick last week – now flourishing again, the priority is expected to be the addition of a new number six to support him, rather than a number eight to follow him.
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That would make a figure like Tchouameni the preferred choice, with the former World Cup finalist hailed as “one of the best midfielders in the world”.
Acquiring such elite, experienced talent wouldn’t have been easy, and it certainly wouldn’t have come cheap, with United previously shelling out £70m for Madrid’s aging Casemiro just four years ago.
With that in mind, acquiring a talent as powerful as Baleba for a potential £50m discount would represent an alternative, even if the Seagulls star has endured a mixed campaign on the south coast.
Hot on the heels of United’s links, the former Lille player looked at his best in the opening weeks of the season, coming off at half-time in three of the first seven league games.
Since returning from Afcon duty, Baleba has yet to complete his starting role for a week, ensuring United will be gambling on his former job in 2024/25.
That campaign was his first, however, and he started 31 games, while averaging 3.7 tackles and interceptions per game, and 5.8 steals per game.
In comparison, in LaLiga this season, Tchouameni has enjoyed a similar record of 3.3 tackles and clearances, and 4.4 recoveries from his 27 starts.
Neither man is a great creator or goalscorer, but they are capable of producing impressive, especially stellar efforts from range.
They also provide a real pillar in front of the back four, with Baleba boasting an 88% pass rate last season, just below the Frenchman’s average of 91% in 2025/26.
Both studied in Ligue 1 at Lille and Monaco, respectively, and have gone on to bigger and bigger things since then, with Baleba perhaps ready for that next step in his career at 22 – the same age Tchouameni was when he moved to Madrid.
Whether or not the thrifty Bloom will agree to a ‘reduced deal’ for Baleba remains to be seen, but considering the personal terms are unlikely to be an issue, United already have one foot in the door.
Man Utd officials hand over checks to sign new Mainoo for £39m
Manchester United are now ramping up their race to sign midfielder Kobbie Mainoo.
