Manchester United was supposed to be wrapping up a deal for Atalanta midfielder Ederson this week. Instead, the whole thing has gone sideways.
The Brazilian was expected in Manchester for a medical after his World Cup run ended Sunday against Norway. But now the club is pumping the brakes, saying they want to do a more thorough exam before signing off. That’s according to multiple reports, and it comes right as United has agreed to a £50 million deal with Chelsea for another Brazilian midfielder, Andrey Santos.
Santos, 22, is viewed by many in Brazil as the long-term successor to Casemiro. He’s got a similar profile to Ederson — high energy, good on the ball, aggressive in the tackle — but he’s five years younger. United’s hierarchy apparently sees the Santos deal as a coup, and the player is set to undergo his medical at Old Trafford tomorrow.
What happened to the Ederson deal?
It looked locked in. United and Atalanta agreed on a €45 million package (about £38.8 million with add-ons) back in early June. Ederson had communicated his desire to move to Old Trafford, and the clubs had been in negotiations for weeks after United hijacked the deal from Atletico Madrid, who had been the frontrunners.
Atalanta’s asking price had dropped significantly — they wanted as much as £70 million last summer — because Ederson’s contract runs out next year. The Italian club didn’t want to lose him for nothing. So when United came in with a reasonable offer, La Dea took it.
But then Ederson got called up to Brazil’s World Cup squad as a late replacement for injured right-back Wesley. That delayed his move. The expectation was that once Brazil’s tournament ended, he’d fly to England, pass a medical, and become a Red Devil.
Instead, Fabrizio Romano is now reporting that United wants “guarantees” before they finalize things with Atalanta. And ESPN Brazil’s Felipe Silva says the deal is currently “stalled.”
The Santos factor
It’s hard not to connect the dots here. United just dropped £50 million on Santos, who was at Chelsea but never really got a run there. He spent last season on loan at Strasbourg and impressed. The feeling around Old Trafford is that they got a bargain for a player with serious upside.
But if you’re Ederson, you have to wonder what’s going on. The club had a deal in place. They had his word. Now there’s a second medical being scheduled, and a younger, cheaper version of the same player is walking through the door.
It could be that United is just being cautious — Ederson has played a lot of football this year, and they want to make sure he’s healthy. Or it could be that they’re quietly shifting their focus to Santos and looking for a way out of the Atalanta agreement.
One thing is clear: this isn’t over. Romano’s note about “guarantees” suggests there’s still a path forward for Ederson, if the medical checks come back clean. But with Santos already in the building, the math changes.
Either way, it’s a sharp twist for a deal that felt like a sure thing a month ago.
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