Manchester United wants to strengthen their midfield before the summer transfer window is closed, but their persistent PSR concerns still remain.
The expenditure of the Summer Transfer Framework of Manchester United has been much more lucrative than some were expected to be the case in May.
Despite missing Champions League football, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko were both bought for substantial costs, while Matheus Cunha arrived during the previous financial period. Although it has been spent so large so far, United does not seem to have been done yet.
Brighton and Hove Albion -midfielder Carlos Baleba is generally reported on the club's radar. It has been claimed this week that United players and the 21-year-old talked about the structure of the club, while representatives have discussed the finances involved in the deal.
The seagulls do not want to sell Baleba and would like to hold £ 100 million or more if they eventually decide to move him further. There are no guarantees that Brighton will receive that money from United or someone else, but those are the figures with which the Old Trafford Giants work together.
After Sesko, the consensus that United would like to sell, and that remains the case. Alejandro Garnacho, Rasmus Hojlund, Antony, Jadon Sancho and Tyrell Malacia all want to leave or are expected to go this season.
In England, the summer transfer window closes on Monday 1 September, which – perhaps – is not much time to do all these deals. Although there is trust that Hojlund will move to AC Milan before that time and Garnacho will hope that he will be in Chelsea by the time the window closes, it still leaves persistent concerns about the remaining trio.
Plans to sell before he signs Baleba may not be as urgent as they seem at first. To begin with, United has until 30 June 2026 to balance the books in accordance with the Premier League profit and sustainability rules (PSR).
This does not give them one, but two windows to get the unwanted players out. Moreover, there are not only in the coming weeks for United to sell players. The Saudi and Turkish transfer windows close on 10 and 11 September respectively. Although United cannot sign players from those regions, they can sell to that market.
For people like Antony and Sancho – who are connected to clubs in both countries – those specific competitions can become a lot more tempting after 1 September. The fact is that this is also a world cup year and if there is a choice to be frozen in United until January or go somewhere to play football, then most self -respecting players will choose the lower option.
As mentioned, United, if necessary, could try again to sell players in January or, in a worst-case scenario, at the end of the Premier League season before the start of the World Cup 2026 and 30 June Deadline of 2026. At this stage there will not be much panic by United in terms of their unwanted players who stay on the books before they close a Baleba deal, but an eye will be firmly on the deadline next year to get their bills in order.