Roy Keane has stated that Manchester United only have one unsellable asset under Rúben Amorim as he gives a harsh assessment of Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho.
Manchester United are set for a busy summer as Rúben Amorim begins making changes to the squad ahead of the new season.
Supported by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS, the club plan to move on at least ten senior players, aiming to raise funds and reshape the team for the future.
Christian Eriksen, Victor Lindelöf, and Jonny Evans will leave when their contracts expire, while Marcus Rashford, Antony, and Jadon Sancho are expected to be sold — with the club hoping to generate over £100 million from those deals.
There is still uncertainty around players like Casemiro, Kobbie Mainoo, and Alejandro Garnacho, as United continue to assess their options during the rebuild.
Keane says Amorim only has one unsellable player
On Friday evening, United fell to a 1-0 defeat against Chelsea, with Marc Cucurella’s second-half header proving the difference as Enzo Maresca’s men continue their fight to finish in Champions League places.
Speaking with Sky Sports after the game, former United midfielder Roy Keane was asked how many players should not be for sale at United this summer. The 53-year-old responded by saying the only player he feels can be deemed as unsellable is club captain Bruno Fernandes.
“Well, obviously, you’d have to be realistic. You’re not going to [move] everyone on, but people like Bruno…” Kean started.
When asked if there was anyone else other than Fernandes, Keane continued. “Bruno’s always one that springs to mind because, obviously, he’s a brilliant player. But, of course, there’s a few you have to hold on to. Just talk about Garnacho. You look at Maguire.
“They’ve got new players who’ve come into the club. They need time to settle in, obviously. The big decision on the goalkeeper. You need a world-class striker. But it’s who comes in for these players.”
Keane thinks £202m trio can leave this summer
Amid United’s summer preparations, there is a real chance that some of the club’s big names could be shown the exit door. Following his admission about Fernandes, Keane was asked if he would fight to keep the young players such as Mainoo, Garnacho, and Rasmus Højlund, to which he gave a strong response.
“No. I wouldn’t be hanging my hat on them three to get Man United [back to the top]. Mainoo comes on tonight – I watched him closely, and he’s strolling around the pitch. Some of his passes were sloppy,” Keane said.
“Garnacho is very kind of… He’s immature. He plays in little moments, but he doesn’t do enough. Again, we spoke before the programme. You want players for the big clubs who turn up week in, week out. And he doesn’t do that.
“He’s got a bit of talent. He makes some good runs, and he threatens it behind. And on his good day, you think, listen, I like what I see. But he’s got too many bad days.
“And Højlund, in his defence, I think he should have probably been a backup striker, third or fourth choice and learn his trade off of two or three brilliant strikers. The fact when he came to the club that he was going to be the main man… he’s not good enough.
“He’s certainly obviously lacking in confidence and belief. And he’s not surrounded by brilliance either. The problems that we’ve spoken about at United all season are still there. If people think they can fix that in one summer, then it’s not going to happen.”
With all three players said to be potentially for sale this summer, reports have suggested that Garnacho has a transfer value of around £60 million this summer, while Mainoo may leave the club for bids upward of £70 million.
United signed Højlund for £72 million from Atalanta in 2023, totalling this trio’s value to £202 million. United may see this figure as a figure they can get close to fetching to reinvest in Amorim’s team this summer.
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