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Manchester United were dealt a reality check on Saturday as they lost 0-1 to Aston Villa at home. The Red Devils failed to find the back of the net all game and were left shell-shocked when the visitors scored in the dying minutes. Bruno Fernandes missed an injury-time penalty to sum up a difficult night for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Manchester United have decided to end their pursuit of Declan Rice. The Red Devils are monitoring a Paris Saint-Germain star, who is also wanted by Barcelona and Chelsea.
On that note, let’s take a look at the major Manchester United transfer stories from 25 September 2021.
Manchester United end Declan Rice pursuit
Manchester United have ended their pursuit of Declan Rice, according to Caught Offside via ESPN. The Red Devils had previously earmarked the Englishman as their ideal target for the defensive midfield position. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wanted to bring Rice to Old Trafford this summer, but were priced out of a move by West Ham United.
The Hammers had slapped a £100m price tag on the player, forcing Manchester United to shelve their plans. They were previously expected to return for the Englishman next year. However, West Ham are unlikely to lessen their asking price for the player and it now appears that the Red Devils will turn to other options to solve their midfield conundrum. According to the report, the Premier League giants believe Rice’s abilities and toolset are similar to what Scott McTominay offers.
Despite Solskjaer being a huge admirer of the Englishman, Manchester United believe Rice will not be an upgrade on McTominay. As such, the Red Devils are ready to pursue alternate targets for the defensive midfield role.
Red Devils monitoring Gianluigi Donnarumma
Manchester United are keeping a close eye on Gianluigi Donnarumma’s situation at Paris Saint-Germain, according to The Hard Tackle via Calciomercato. The Italian goalkeeper only joined the Ligue 1 giants this summer but is unhappy with his lack of minutes at the Parc des Princes. The Red Devils are interested in his services, but face competition from the likes of Chelsea and Barcelona.
A move to Old Trafford might be far from ideal for Donnarumma, given that Manchester United already have David de Gea and Dean Henderson on their roster. The Italian has managed just two appearances in all competitions since his move to France, as Mauricio Pochettino has preferred to rotate him and Keylor Navas so far.
Thomas Tuchel would have guided Manchester United to the title, according to Paul Merson
Paul Merson believes Manchester United could have won the league this season if they had Thomas Tuchel in charge. The Red Devils have endured a mixed start to the season and things got further complicated with a 0-1 defeat on Saturday.
Merson claimed Manchester United will not find success this season in the league, but pointed out things could have been different under Tuchel.
“United are not going to win the league this season, in my opinion. But if they had a manager like Tuchel it would be different,” said Merson.
