David Ornstein has issued the latest on Kobbie Mainoo and Joshua Zirkzee’s potential moves to West Ham once the Premier League’s winter window opens.
Manchester United have multiple transfer decisions to make in January as Rúben Amorim assesses his squad for the second half of the season.
With respect ot incomings, there have been reports that the club are looking to sign a new midfielder to help those currently in the position, with question marks surrounding Casemiro, Manuel Ugarte, and Kobbie Mainoo.
However, with United having played just one game a week for most of the campaign so far, several players have seen their minutes extremely limited, leading to speculation about their future.
Both Mainoo and Joshua Zirkzee are yet to make a Premier League start this season and are reportedly set to push to leave the club on loan in January as they look to break into their national sides ahead of the World Cup.
West Ham keen on both Mainoo and Zirkzee
According to various reports, Zirkzee is particularly keen to stay in the Premier League if he were to leave in January, even for a six-month loan. Meanwhile, Mainoo is thought to prefer a move to Napoli.
However, both players have been linked with West Ham, a struggling side that sits 19th in the league table with just four points after nine games and is in desperate need of reinforcements.
Transfer specialist David Ornstein has provided the latest on the Hammers and their links to the United duo. “I am told by sources at the club that they are looking to bring in a few new players,” he told NBC.
“A forward would surely be on the agenda, but not Ivan Toney. Other players are linked with them: Kobbie Mainoo and Joshua Zirkzee at Manchester United.
“But I think it’s a pretty remote chance [that the Hammers get either of them]. We don’t even know if they will be leaving Old Trafford.”
United set to block Mainoo and Zirkzee exits
While United are on good form, Amorim will be keeping one eye on the upcoming December fixture list. The African Cup of Nations is set to kick off on December 21 and not finish until January 18, with three of United’s players set to depart.
Bryan Mbeumo will no doubt be called up with Cameroon, while Amad will be with the Ivory Coast, and Noussair Mazraoui is likely to compete with Morocco.
For that reason, reports earlier this week suggested that United would block Zirkzee and Mainoo’s pending requests to leave at the beginning of January, as it would leave Amorim with a more barren squad.
However, with AFCON set to be finished almost two weeks before the winter window closes, the club’s view on their possible departures may soften in the final week or so of the window.
Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is streamed live every Thursday at 12:30 pm (BST) on the United View YouTube channel.