Manu Kone: Fierce rivals plotting last-minute hijack

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The Peoples Person

19 July 2026

Manchester United’s plans to revamp their midfield have so far seen them sign two Premier League-proven performers.

Andrey Santos

impressed on his debut

against Wrexham, while

Youri Tielemans

had a stellar World Cup for Belgium.

INEOS wanted their third addition to also come from the English top flight but a move for

Carlos Baleba

depends on Brighton & Hove Albion’s asking price, while Bournemouth are

playing hardball over Alex Scott

With funds tight, United could opt to

sign a low-cost alternative

from outside England, with Manu Kone emerging as a leading target.

AS Roma have been steadily

raising the Frenchman’s asking price

due to his World Cup displays, as a result of which, the Red Devils have yet to submit an offer.

This dilly-dallying could potentially allow United’s fiercest rivals Liverpool to hijack the move, if

Football Insider

are to be believed.

“Liverpool are prepared to join rivals

Manchester United

in the race to sign Roma star Manu Kone, sources have told Football Insider.

“Alongside their rivals, Andoni Iraola’s side had scouts keeping tabs on the 25-year-old’s performances at the World Cup, where he featured for the fourth-placed France side.

“Man United have been keeping a close eye on the midfielder’s situation, but sources say that is as far as their interest has gone, and Liverpool could pip them to a deal.”

25/26 season stats

The Old Trafford side have already been on the wrong side of a hijack, with

Tottenham Hotspur stealing Mateus Fernandes away from them

at the last second. Hopefully, they can avoid a similar scenario this time around.

The Serie A side are reluctantly open to a sale and will be hoping to earn close to £50 million from the 25-year-old’s sale.

The only way United can hasten proceedings is if they greenlight the sales of stars such as

Marcus Rashford

Lisandro Martinez

, and

Noussair Mazraoui

, not to mention several academy stars.

The 20-time English league champions also have the likes of

Nicolas Raskin

and Sander Berge on their radar, and both will cost considerably less. It will be interesting to see how INEOS conclude their revamp with

Michael Carrick

desperate for more quality.

Feature image Paolo Bruno via Getty Images

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