Manchester United got burned last summer. Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha both wanted in. That mattered. A lot.
So when Youri Tielemans told United he considered playing at Old Trafford a childhood dream, the club listened. They acted. And they triggered a $35 million release clause at Aston Villa that caught just about everyone off guard.
Why United stopped chasing players who weren’t all in
ESPN reported that United executives saw a direct connection between players who genuinely wanted to be there and how quickly they adapted. Mbeumo and Cunha turned down other suitors including Tottenham last summer because they wanted United specifically. Staff inside the club believed that was a key reason both fit in fast.
Contrast that with what happened with Jadon Sancho. Some staff maintain Sancho was never fully sure about leaving Borussia Dortmund for United in 2021. That uncertainty, they think, played a role in the struggles that followed.
United missed on its primary midfield targets this summer — Elliot Anderson went to Manchester City, Mateus Fernandes went to Tottenham — but the club didn’t panic. That would have been the old way. The INEOS way was to move quietly and quickly, first for Chelsea’s Andrey Santos at $50 million, then for Tielemans.
The release clause advantage and the United tax problem
Chief executive Omar Berrada likes deals with release clauses. It kills what people inside the game call the United tax — the premium sellers slap on when they know United has money. For $35 million in a summer where comparable Premier League midfielders are going for much more, the club views Tielemans as a bargain.
Aston Villa wanted to keep him. They offered improved terms. Saudi clubs offered him life-changing money. Tielemans made it very clear where he wanted to go.
The same applied to Santos. United first tried to sign him last summer while negotiating Alejandro Garnacho’s move to Chelsea. Chelsea said no then. United stayed in touch with Santos’s representatives. When Chelsea’s position changed, United pounced.
United’s approach is straightforward now: prioritize players who view Old Trafford as the peak of their career, not just a place to cash checks. It sounds obvious. But for a club that spent years signing guys who were more interested in the payday than the badge, it qualifies as a real shift.
Featured image Molly Darlington via Getty Images
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