Man Utd ‘turned to’ Baleba after £45m move for Arsenal star crumbled

Man Utd only ‘turned to’ Carlos Baleba after Arsenal hardened their stance on selling Myles Lewis-Skelly, according to reports.

The Red Devils made strengthening their midfielder an overwhelming priority in the summer transfer market with Man Utd setting their stall out early for three new midfield signings.

It had seemed early on in the window that Atalanta’s Ederson would be their first signing in that position but a deal fell through after the World Cup over medical concerns.

Man Utd quickly moved to bring in Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos from Aston Villa and Chelsea respectively, before eventually getting a deal for Baleba over the line in late August.

It was thought that Baleba might have missed his chance to sign for Man Utd after the Red Devils failed to sign him 12 months before.

And The Athletic‘s Laurie Whitwell has now revealed that Man Utd looked on course to potentially sign Arsenal star Lewis-Skelly, who can play at left-back and in midfield, ahead of Baleba.

With Baleba already lined up last summer, Man Utd decided to ‘hit pause and pursue other options first’ with ‘a sense of uncertainty over his arrival as recently as the weekend before United made their decisive move’.

Whitwell claims that Man Utd were ‘giving serious consideration to staging a proper bid for Lewis-Skelly’ before they eventually ‘turned to’ Baleba.

Adding in The Athletic, Whitwell wrote: ‘Earlier on in the summer United had been told, via intermediaries, that he could be available for around £45m, and such a prospect held appeal at Old Trafford. He had played the entire Champions League final in midfield but started only two Premier League games by January and then did not feature at all in the top-flight until April. His position under Mikel Arteta appeared precarious.

‘The situation was complicated, though, by Lewis-Skelly’s status as an Arsenal academy product with a strong connection to the fans. He also wanted to stay. It would have been a dramatic transfer, with PR implications. The potential price rose significantly, with a figure of £70m communicated to some close to the process, although United were never informed of an updated figure.’

Man Utd ‘made the decision to step away from talks exactly a fortnight before deadline’ and that led to them wrapping up a quick deal for Baleba.

Baleba may not play for Man Utd for at least another three weeks

The former Brighton midfielder Baleba is yet to make his Man Utd debut with Michael Carrick revealing that the Cameroon international is likely to miss another three weeks with an ankle injury.

Carrick said in a press conference last Friday: “He’s got a little ankle issue so maybe a couple of weeks or so, maybe three weeks.

“But we knew that before, so it’s no major issue. It’ll be great to have him when we can.”

When asked whether Baleba could return before the international break, Carrick added: “We’ll wait and see. We’re hopeful, but I don’t want to put any deadlines on it just yet.”