Third Man Utd midfield deal gets stunning boost as manager open to €55m sale

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13 July 2026

Manchester United have been given a major lift as they look to sign France World Cup star Manu Kone, as

Roma

boss Gian Piero Gasperini has admitted a sale is likely to take place this summer.

Man Utd’s hunt for midfield recruits this year has been an eventful one. They missed out on Elliot Anderson to rivals Manchester City before watching Mateus Fernandes join Tottenham Hotspur instead.

Man Utd

reached an agreement with Atalanta for Ederson, only for the Brazilian to fail a medical.

United have finally been successful in landing a new midfielder, capturing Andrey Santos from Chelsea for £48m plus £2m in add-ons. They have also triggered Youri Tielemans’ £35m release clause at Aston Villa in a surprise move.

Kone

, Joao Gomes (Wolves), Alex Scott (Bournemouth) and Ayyoub Bouaddi (Lille) are the midfielders United are eyeing next. They are giving serious consideration to bidding for Kone, who is available for €55m (£47m) this summer.

Gasperini has now lifted INEOS’ hopes of completing the transfer by talking up the likelihood of a sale.

“Unlike [Donyell] Malen, he [Kone] was sidelined for a while due to injury and arrived at the World Cup in better shape,” Gasperini said (via

Sport Witness

)

“Last year he hadn’t played for France yet, and he managed to earn a starting spot, which shows his true worth.

“His future? I think these Financial Fair Play conditions are never so precise and defined; they vary from team to team.

“Roma also need to balance the books, which have been burdensome in recent years.

“I hoped that returning to the Champions League would be enough, but it’s clear that financial statements are crucial for clubs. I believe there will be more clarity in the coming weeks.”

Gasperini’s comments confirm reports from Italy that

need to sell a major asset such as Kone to improve their financial situation.

That looks set to play right into United’s hands, as they have already enquired about the 25-year-old’s situation with

Although, United could face competition for the 25-year-old.

The Kopite View

have claimed it is actually Liverpool who are leading the race for Kone.

It is not out of the question that United return for Ederson at some stage in the future, despite his move being scrapped recently. Journalist Ben Jacobs has written on social media: ‘Ederson’s proposed move to

Manchester United

is off for now, but #MUFC have not ruled out revisiting later in the summer.

‘Atalanta sources maintain the player is fully fit, but #MUFC decided not to proceed after carrying out a thorough medical with specialists looking at an issue with Ederson’s knee flagged in initial tests.

‘Ederson flew to England for additional tests following the World Cup. As

debated whether to proceed, they got buy in from both Andrey Santos and later Youri Tielemans and quickly closed both deals. Yet Santos is not seen as a replacement to the Atalanta midfielder.

‘Although the transfer is off as it stands, and could well remain this way, it is not entirely ruled out a new approach to Atalanta is made later in the summer. Yet if the deal is revived, it won’t be on the same €45m terms.

are sympathetic to the player but the deal won’t be formalised as of now.’

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