What the Premier League’s transfer loophole means for Adrien Rabiot’s Man United hopes

A loophole in the Premier League’s squad rules means Manchester United could still sign Adrien Rabiot.

Rabiot, 29, has been without a club since the end of his contract with Juventus on the 1st of July of this year.

The five-time Ligue 1 winning midfielder has constantly been suggested as a possible addition to Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United squad, with reports as recent as this week claiming that United are in talks with the Frenchman.

Both Football Insider and the Daily Star have reported that Rabiot is in talks with representatives from United, with the former adding that Rabiot’s wage demands are currently above what the Red Devils’ can offer.

However, if United can come to terms with Rabiot, the possibility for Ten Hag’s team to add the 48 capped France international to their team still exists.

The Red Devils have until Saturday, September 14th to submit their finalised 25-man squad for the first half of the Premier League season.

Free agents can be added to that squad list at any point during the season, as long as space remains on the list and it does not place the club in breach of any pre-established rules.

One such rule would be that Premier League clubs can only fill 17 out of 25 spots with non-homegrown players, a spot Rabiot would need to take.

In Ten Hag’s current squad, he would struggle to find space for Rabiot, but due to the Premier League’s rules on U21 players, a loophole exists.

Any player born on or after January 1st, 2003, will qualify as a U21 player for the 24/25 season, so both Alejandro Garnacho (20) and Rasmus Hojlund (21) do not need to be included on the squad list for this season.

Will Manchester United sign Adrien Rabiot?

For the majority of Erik ten Hag’s tenure as Manchester United manager the Red Devils have been linked with a move for Rabiot.

Veronique Rabiot, the Frenchman’s agent and mother told La Gazzetta dello Sport in 2022 that she and her client were on “Excellent terms with Manchester United.”

As aforementioned it has been reported Rabiot has been in talks with United as recently as this week, so a move is not out of the question.

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