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Hello and welcome to Sportskeeda's Manchester United transfer roundup for the day. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have seen an upturn in form recently, defeating Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham Hotspur and Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City in back-to-back games, but it should come as no surprise that the Red Devils are still being linked with plenty of new players to improve their squad in January.
Without further ado, here are the main headlines regarding United’s potential transfer activity next month.
Former United star urges Solskjaer to forget Haaland
Young Norwegian striker Erling Braut Haaland has been linked with a move to Manchester United for a long time now, essentially since he started producing Champions League heroics; he scored 8 goals in the competition for RB Salzburg despite the Austrian side being eliminated in the group stages.
The Evening Standard however is reporting that former United star Dimitar Berbatov has urged Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to forget a move for the Norwegian, suggesting that it could harm the development of Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood. Berbatov stated,
“I don’t think United need to sign a striker in January as they have decent options up front already. I want Marcus Rashford to get better and better, I’m a big admirer of Anthony Martial and am keen to see Mason Greenwood get more time on the pitch."
He went on to add,
“I think United have the talent there and signing a new striker, whether it’s an emerging talent like Haaland or the more experienced Mario Mandzukic, could discourage their young players.”
The Standard is also reporting that United are still frontrunners for Haaland’s signature, though – so only time will tell whether Berbatov’s feeling is correct.
Solskjaer drops a hint without naming names
The Manchester Evening News is reporting that United will definitely bring in some new players during the January window, and they have a quote directly from the horse’s mouth to back that up. They quote boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as stating,
“We're looking to strengthen in many positions. If you look at our squad compared to others, we're getting there but need two or three players to have a squad with enough numbers to rotate and we'll see what we sign.”
The report also suggests that the Red Devils have been looking at Erling Braut Haaland as well as Leicester City’s James Maddison – but also states that Solskjaer feels that loan deals might be more realistic for his side.
Red Devils in pole position to sign Jadon Sancho?
The Guardian is reporting today that United feel that they’re in pole position to sign Borussia Dortmund’s in-demand teenage forward Jadon Sancho, who has also been linked with moves to Liverpool and Chelsea.
The 19-year old has scored 7 Bundesliga goals this season and has also provided 8 assists, but there have been reports questioning his behaviour and attitude behind the scenes, while other reports have suggested he feels like a scapegoat at the German side.
The report does not suggest a potential fee for Sancho, but it does state that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer still feels like Old Trafford would be a desirable destination for Europe’s best players.
That would bode well for another potential move, as the same report suggests United are still interested in Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen, although the Dane is expected to allow his contract at Spurs to run down in order to make a move abroad in the summer.
Juventus move for Pogba ruled out
The future of Paul Pogba – who is about to return to action following an injury layoff – at Old Trafford is still up in the air, despite Ole Gunnar Solskjaer stating on Thursday that he’s looking forward to having the Frenchman available to him again as “he’s one of the best players in the world”.
One destination that can now be ruled out however is Juventus. The Italian giants – who sold Pogba to United in 2016 for a huge fee of £89 million – were linked with a move for the Frenchman, but SportsMole (via Calciomercato) is reporting that The Old Lady’s Sporting Director Fabio Paratici has stated that they’re not looking to sign anyone right now.
Paratici namedropped Emre Can and Sami Khedira as two key members of his side’s midfield, and said that Juve had “no intention of operating in the market”.
