Romano assesses the chances of Man Utd signing one of £159m trio in January | OneFootball

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Football365

·28 September 2022

Romano assesses the chances of Man Utd signing one of £159m trio in January

Article image:Romano assesses the chances of Man Utd signing one of £159m trio in January

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano claims Man Utd chose to sign Antony over Napoli striker Victor Osimhen in the summer after making the Brazilian their “priority”.

The Red Devils brought in over £200m worth of players over the summer as they looked to support new manager Erik ten Hag.


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Six new signings arrived at Old Trafford in the form of Antony, Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Martin Dubravka.

There were rumours that Man Utd could increase their spending in the final week of the transfer window but some of the other speculation did not come to fruition.

Many fans and former players still think Ten Hag needs another striker to provide support to Cristiano Ronaldo – who was linked with a move away from Old Trafford – Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial.

Napoli’s Osimhen was considered a target during the final weeks of the window but his €130m (£116.3m) asking price put the Red Devils off.

Two cheaper options in the form of PSV Eindhoven’s Cody Gakpo and Barcelona’s Memphis Depay were also mooted with the pair having £25m and €20m (£17.9m) price tags on their respective heads.

And Romano has now provided his asssessment on which of the £159.2m trio Man Utd are most likely to buy in the winter transfer market.

When asked who Man Utd could sign out of Osimhen, Gakpo and Depay in January, Romano told Caught Offiside: “I’ve seen many rumours about Napoli striker Victor Osimhen – a very good striker, a very important player.

“My understanding is the only chance to sign him was towards the end of the summer, but they decided to go for Antony as their priority.

“At the moment, Napoli have absolutely no intention to sell Osimhen in January. They’re having an amazing season and Osimhen is a big part of that. They’ve always said it would take more than €100m, so it won’t be easy in January to tempt Napoli into a sale.

“Memphis Depay will be out of contract at the end of the season, so could be one to watch for Manchester United in January. He wasn’t a priority in the summer, even though there was an opportunity that they explored.

“Cody Gakpo could be one to watch – we know he was really close to joining Leeds towards the end of the summer, and for Man United he was a serious option as well.

“They had good contacts with the player, he shares an agent with Erik ten Hag, and there is a feeling that English clubs will come back in for Gakpo in January. United know he could be an option, and how he performs in the World Cup could end up being important for his future.”

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