Manchester United are looking to deal Manchester City an off-the-field blow shortly after pipping them to the FA Cup.
Manchester United shift in recruitment
Manchester United is expected to have an interesting summer transfer window in 2024. Since Sir Jim Ratcliffe became a minority shareholder in the club, this will be the first window.
Since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, United has spent more than £1 billion on acquisitions, but they haven’t been able to contend for the Premier League title throughout that period. Under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, they came the closest, finishing 12 points behind Man City in 2020–21.
However, Ratcliffe has shed some light on INEOS’ overhaul of the club’s recruitment strategy, suggesting they will aim to sign young stars and turn them into top players rather than paying out large sums of money for ready-made names as they have done in the past.
“I’d rather find the next Mbappe than spend a fortune trying to buy success,”Ratcliffe said in March. “It’s not that clever, is it, buying Mbappe, in a way? Anyone could figure that one out. Much more challenging is to find the next Mbappe or Jude Bellingham or the next Roy Keane.”
The players that United has recently been linked to already reflect this change in requirement strategy. Man United “is willing to do anything” to recruit highly-rated 19-year-old Aaron Anselmino, while the Red Devils are reportedly trying to sign Wolves’ Rayan Ait-Nouri this summer. Marc Guehi, a center-back for Crystal Palace, has also shown himself to be an excellent addition to the defence.
Man Utd want to beat Man City to “hot striker” after FA Cup win
A second emerging talent is now being linked to a summer transfer window move to Old Trafford. Amin Chiakha is the player in issue.
Sport Witness and Tipsbladet, a Danish publication, claim that Man United and Manchester City are interested in signing FC Copenhagen’s forward, who is referred to be a “hot striker”. The FA Cup final featured a match between two of the strongest teams in the Premier League.
Man City was predicted to win, just like they did in 2022–2023, but Erik ten Hag’s team surprised everyone by winning 2-1 at Wembley. They will now aim to repeat that performance in terms of transfers before the Citizens.
In addition to the two Manchester teams, Chiakha was rumoured to be interested in Ajax and Juventus. Last month, Chiakha addressed the connections, stating, “Juventus and Ajax? I am aware that clubs throughout Europe are observing me, and that is typical. But my attention is limited to Copenhagen.
I strive to play as well as I can. The 18-year-old has not yet played for Copenhagen at the senior level, but in 34 youth appearances in 2023–24, he recorded 24 goals and three assists, including eight in nine UEFA Youth League games (two of which were against United).
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