Manchester United’s pursuit of Aurelien Tchouameni just got a lot more interesting. Real Madrid, after months of insisting the French midfielder wasn’t going anywhere, is now open to selling him for around €80 million ($68 million). Three separate reporters have confirmed the shift, and it changes everything for United’s summer plans.
The trigger? Jose Mourinho wants Rodri. Madrid’s manager has made it clear he wants the Manchester City midfielder at the Bernabeu, and that means someone has to go. According to Samuel Luckhurst of The Sun, Madrid is willing to cash in on Tchouameni to fund the Rodri move, even though a new contract for the 26-year-old had been verbally agreed. That’s a pretty quick U-turn.
BBC Sport’s Simon Stone also picked up on the shift, noting that Madrid is open to discussing Tchouameni’s situation. But Stone added a reality check: Tchouameni’s salary demands and the transfer fee don’t exactly align with United’s push to keep budgets under control. Michael Carrick is also looking for a left winger and a center-forward, so the spending has to spread out.
Fabrizio Romano weighed in too, saying Madrid needs to sell a big name to afford new arrivals, though he didn’t specifically name Tchouameni. Vinicius Junior is another candidate, with Arsenal reportedly exploring a move for the Brazilian. So it’s not a done deal that Tchouameni is the one leaving.
For United, Tchouameni is the dream target to replace Casemiro in the No. 6 role. They’ve already signed Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans this summer, but they want that elite defensive midfielder to complete the rebuild. The shortlist includes Manu Kone (Roma), Carlos Baleba (Brighton), Sander Berge (Fulham), and Tyler Adams (Bournemouth).
United has held concrete talks with Kone’s agents, according to Romano, but hasn’t opened negotiations with Roma yet. And reports that INEOS started talks for Botafogo’s Danilo? Romano shut that down, saying it was actually the player’s camp that reached out to United.
Right now, Tchouameni, Kone, and Baleba look like the most likely options to round out United’s midfield revamp. But the next move depends on Madrid. If they push through a Rodri deal, Tchouameni could be on his way to Old Trafford before the window closes.
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