Manchester United could hand Carlos Baleba the perfect arrival gift at Old Trafford after the Brighton star opened up on an emotional story.
Manchester United enjoyed a strong start to the summer transfer window, bringing in Matheus Cunha from Wolves and highly rated defender Diego Leon.
Following lengthy negotiations, Bryan Mbeumo joined the squad in time for the US tour, with RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Šeško also arriving earlier this week.
The club remain active in the market and have reportedly opened discussions with Brighton over midfielder Carlos Baleba, who is said to be keen on making the move.
Baleba joined Brighton from Lille in the summer of 2023 and has since racked up 61 Premier League appearances for the Seagulls.
Reports have indicated United made their initial approach last week and have held positive talks with the player’s representatives.
United could hand Baleba perfect arrival gift
This deal does not seem like one which is going away, which suggests that United are going to really attempt to get it over the line.
Should Baleba end up joining the club, he could end up receiving the perfect arrival gift as a result of player exits to fund his signing.
The 21-year-old wore the no.20 at Brighton during his first two seasons in the Premier League but decided to swap to the no.17 this summer.
When asked for the reasoning behind this change by Brighton’s media team, Baleba said: “Because the first time when my mum came to a stadium [to watch me play] I had the number 17 and I scored. It was the first goal she’d seen.”
At Old Trafford, Baleba would be able to take that exact number as Alejandro Garnacho is expected to depart the club and leave the no.17 free to take.
Baleba offer depends on sales
Baleba wants to join United and that is what keeps this deal alive heading into the final weeks of the transfer window.
Brighton do not want to let him go but probably would if their valuation is met. The only problem is that their valuation is huge; upwards of £100 million.
This would break United’s transfer record and it means that players must be sold before any deal occurs. Garnacho is hopefully going to secure at least £40 million from Chelsea.
Read More: Brighton release 25-word update on Carlos Baleba as Man Utd ‘make contact’ for £87m transfer
Meanwhile, Rasmus Højlund is also likely to leave and join AC Milan but that might only be on a loan. Antony and Jadon Sancho are up for sale.
If the Reds can finally get some of these sales over the line, then it seems likely that they will at least test the waters with a bid for Baleba.
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