Manchester United have been linked with Torino shotstopper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic as a replacement for André Onana, with the Serbian spending time in United’s Academy.
André Onana’s future at Manchester United is under increasing scrutiny following a string of error-filled performances that have seen him fall out of favour at Old Trafford.
In the lead-up to United’s Europa League quarter-final first leg against Olympique Lyonnais, Onana was involved in a tense exchange of words with former Red Nemanja Matic. However, he failed to back up his talk on the pitch, committing two costly mistakes that allowed Lyon to snatch a 2-2 draw.
He was subsequently dropped for the next match — a 4-1 defeat to Newcastle United — though his replacement, Altay Bayındır, did little to impress in his place.
Onana is expected to return to the starting lineup when Lyon visit Old Trafford for the second leg on Thursday evening, but uncertainty continues to surround his long-term role at the club.
United linked with Milinkovic-Savic return
With United reportedly hunting the market to assess what opportunities lie out there amid Onana’s possible departure.
According to reports from the Italian press, United are interested in the possibility of signing Torino shot-stopper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, who was in the club’s Academy set-up in 2015.
The 28-year-old Serbian is reported to hold a value of around £17 million, with Manchester City and Napoli also both keeping tabs on his situation this summer.
The interesting situation regarding Milinkovic-Savic is that the player was once within United’s Academy set-up, so any transfer would result in him returning to the club he departed back in 2016.
Why did United sell Milinkovic-Savic in 2016?
United initially signed the Serbian for around £1.4 million from Serbian first-division club FK Vojvodina Novi Sad in July 2014, but immediately loaned him back for the duration of the 2014/15 campaign.
He was in part signed by United in order to tempt his brother, Sergej Milinković-Savić, to join the club while he was at Serie A side Lazio, although the deal was never finalised. Sergej now plays in Saudi Arabia for Al-Hilal.
Goalkeeper Milinković-Savić returned to United at the end of the 2014/15 season and stayed within the club’s Academy for a further few months before the club released him for free on 1 January 2016 when he joined Lechia Gdansk.
Although United often only release Academy players if they feel they have no chance of progressing into the first-team, Milinkovic-Savic’s situation was different.
The player was denied a work permit, meaning his agreement with the club was voided in November 2015, allowing him to depart once the January 2016 transfer window opened.
Milinkovic-Savic went on to move to Serie A club Torino in the summer of 2017, and after loan spells with SPAL, Ascoli, and Belgian side Standard Liège, he has been an integral part of his parent club’s team since 2020, having kept a total of 51 clean sheets across 152 appearances.
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