Man  City has signed Man United four years target, player to replace Rodri €199M rated deal,fans and well wishes celebrated 

Man  City has signed Man United four years target, player to replace Rodri €199M rated deal,fans and well wishes celebrated

Man Utd Transfers: ‘Increased Bid Coming’ For €120m-rated Star As Man City Dream Fades Fast
Man Utd to destroy Man City transfer dream with ‘increased bid coming’ for €120m star Guardiola loves
James Marshment 5 hours ago

Joao Neves of Benfica is wanted by both Manchester United and Manchester City this summer

Manchester United are reportedly ready to launch a mammoth improved bid to win the race for Joao Neves this summer and beat Manchester City to his signature and end the transfer aims of both Pep Guardiola and Bernardo Silva in the process.

The Red Devils are preparing for what they hope will be a big summer on the transfer front as INEO chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe looks to make his mark at Old Trafford. Having acquired a 27.7% stake in the club from the Glazers and with it gaining full sporting control, the British billionaire has ambitious plans to transform the fortunes of Manchester United.

For too long now, United have been forced to take a backseat and watch their two arch-rivals in Liverpool and Manchester City dominate  the hunt for silverware in England, though two cup wins in two years for United have punctured their duopoly and illustrated the Red Devils are also capable of competing.

GO DEEPER 🔴⚪⚫ The four problem positions Ratcliffe must fix at Man Utd and who might solve their weaknesses

Ratcliffe, however, is determined to turbo-charge a major improvement at Old Trafford that will see the club looking to strengthen the spine of their team. To that end, TEAMtalk understands the Man Utd chief wants to make a minimum of four new signings, with a central defender, a midfielder, a new striker and a new right-sided attacker all on his wishlist.

However, the club will need to make sacrifices too to keep on the right side of the Premier League’s strict new FFP regulations. The exits of Anthony Martial and Raphael Varane (on a combined £590,000 a week – or a staggering £30.68m per year) will help, while other high earners, such as Casemiro, likely to follow.

Man Utd ready to offload high earners
The first major sale of the summer, though, could see United hit badly in the pocket with a crippling £41.5m loss expected on their initial investment into Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

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All these sacrificed, though, are necessary with Ratcliffe, alongside sporting director Dan Ashworth and technical director Jason Wilcox looking to fine-tune their playing squad and add a much-needed dose of additional quality.

And with the type of targets United looking at in both defence and midfield unlikely to come cheap, the focus for the Red Devils will undoubtedly be on quality over quantity.

Ashworth’s job will be on ensuring United sign both the right characters and do not pay over the odds to land them. To often in he past the Red Devils have been seen as easy targets when it comes bringing in new players. The extortionate fees paid to Ajax two summers ago for Lisandro Martinez and Antony are testament to that – and Ashworth will need to ensure the days of United being bullied in the market are no more.

It is that policy that has come to pass with their first concrete move of the summer window for Benfica midfielder Neves.

The teenage midfielder has emerged as one of European football’s best No 6’s around, with his talents already winning acclaim from his compatriot and United skipper, Bruno Fernandes.

Tipped to be one of the stars of the upcoming European Championships, Neves has a blockbuster €120m (£102.1m) exit clause in his Benfica deal, making any such move difficult to pull off.

Man Utd transfers: Improved bid coming for Man City target Joao Neves
However, United believe a deal is there to be done and have already seen an opening €60m (£51.1m) proposal laughed off.

But while that opening gambit has been laughed off, it’s now claimed that United ‘have an increased bid coming’ in a bid to ‘steal a march’ on their rivals in the race for the 19-year-old.

While the actual amount is not disclosed, it’s believed United could raise their offer to €75m (£63.9m) for the player, while also adding in a string of add-ons that could take the fee nearer the €85m (£72.4m) mark.

United are well aware of the need to act with haste to win this particular transfer face. Benfica are keen to tie the midfielder down to a new deal and raise his exit clause further towards the €150m mark – making their prospects of a deal now even tougher to negotiate.

IN DEPTH 🔴⚪⚫ Seven Casemiro replacements Man Utd could buy this summer as they target perfect Kobbie Mainoo partner

And there is also the small matter of Manchester City‘s reported interest, with Portuguese reports claiming the midfield sensation is also very much adored by Guardiola and a player he would love to have at the Etihad.

Indeed, City’s chances of a deal have also been talked up by Bernardo Silva, who opes to convince the player to move to the blue half of Manchester this summer.

“As a Portuguese and a player I like, I’d like to see him alongside me. But I want the best for him,” Silva said of his compatriot.

Silva added: “Guardiola? I don’t need to convince him. Joao Neves is already convincing because of the way he works and the energy he brings to the game.

“He won’t be a cheap player, it won’t be easy for many clubs to get in on the act.

“Let him make his decision, let it be what’s best for him. If he keeps up this energy, he has a very good future ahead of him.”

Neves has already clocked up 75 senior games for Benfica, scoring four times, and has been capped six times by his country.

Question 1
Rasmus Hojlund cost Man Utd an initial £64m. Was the initial price they paid for Bruno Fernandes higher or lower?
use
hint
Higher
Lower
Sir Jim Ratcliffe
Joao Neves
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Erling Haaland became ‘dressing room burden’ after Pep Guardiola dropped transfer hint

Erling Haaland became a ‘burden on the dressing room’ in his final few months at Dortmund – especially after Pep Guardiola dropped a huge hint he was going to sign him.

The Norwegian goal machine couldn’t keep out of the news toward the tail-end of the 2021/22 season, with the endless speculation putting strain on the BVB dressing room.

Haaland had been at the Westfalenstadion for two-and-a-half years and after banging in 86 goals in 89 games, the biggest clubs in the world were queueing up to sign him, particularly since he had a rather convenient £51million release clause in his contract.

Manchester City ultimately won the race for his signature in May 2022, but only after launching a charm offensive, which began nearly a year earlier. Guardiola openly lavished Haaland with praise as early as June 2021, telling reporters he was one of the very best around.

“The numbers speak for themselves,” the Spaniard said. “Of course, he’s one of the best strikers in the world right now at his age… I know the quality of this player and I think everyone knows.”

Speaking just a few weeks after Haaland’s departure, Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl insisted the clamour around the superstar forward had become a bother both internally and externally and even claimed the club were happy to be rid of him.

“As much as we have always appreciated Erling and the success he has had with our shirt, in the end, the matter had definitely become a burden, both in the dressing room and for the club,” he told German outlet Bild. “In general, for the whole environment, it was just him. The timing of the sale was right, both for us and for City.”

Haaland went on to score an eye-watering 52 goals in his first season at the Etihad Stadium, helping Guardiola’s men seal an historic Treble in the process. The club followed that up by winning the Premier League for a fourth successive year in Haaland’s second season, with the ex-Molde striker scoring 38 times in all competitions.

Meanwhile, Dortmund have been faring pretty well since Haaland’s exit. They finished level on points with Bayern Munich at the end of the 2022/23 season, agonisingly losing out on the Bundesliga title on goal difference.

Their domestic form suffered last season, with Edin Terzic’s men sealing a disappointing fifth-place finish, but they did reach the final of the Champions League, where they were beaten 2-0 by Real Madrid.

Erling Haaland became ‘dressing room burden’ after Pep Guardiola dropped transfer hint

Erling Haaland became a ‘burden on the dressing room’ in his final few months at Dortmund – especially after Pep Guardiola dropped a huge hint he was going to sign him.

The Norwegian goal machine couldn’t keep out of the news toward the tail-end of the 2021/22 season, with the endless speculation putting strain on the BVB dressing room.

Haaland had been at the Westfalenstadion for two-and-a-half years and after banging in 86 goals in 89 games, the biggest clubs in the world were queueing up to sign him, particularly since he had a rather convenient £51million release clause in his contract.

Manchester City ultimately won the race for his signature in May 2022, but only after launching a charm offensive, which began nearly a year earlier. Guardiola openly lavished Haaland with praise as early as June 2021, telling reporters he was one of the very best around.

“The numbers speak for themselves,” the Spaniard said. “Of course, he’s one of the best strikers in the world right now at his age… I know the quality of this player and I think everyone knows.”

Speaking just a few weeks after Haaland’s departure, Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl insisted the clamour around the superstar forward had become a bother both internally and externally and even claimed the club were happy to be rid of him.

“As much as we have always appreciated Erling and the success he has had with our shirt, in the end, the matter had definitely become a burden, both in the dressing room and for the club,” he told German outlet Bild. “In general, for the whole environment, it was just him. The timing of the sale was right, both for us and for City.”

Haaland went on to score an eye-watering 52 goals in his first season at the Etihad Stadium, helping Guardiola’s men seal an historic Treble in the process. The club followed that up by winning the Premier League for a fourth successive year in Haaland’s second season, with the ex-Molde striker scoring 38 times in all competitions.