Manchester United are now planning to hold a meeting with an “exceptional” star, who has already agreed personal terms on a move to Old Trafford.
Man Utd already looking ahead to January window
The summer transfer window has to be regarded as mixed for Man United, given that they managed to bring in some proven Premier League forwards in the form of Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, but also missed out on a midfielder.
Incomings
From
Fee
Bryan Mbeumo
Brentford
£71m
Benjamin Sesko
RB Leipzig
£66.4m
Matheus Cunha
Wolves
£62.5m
Senne Lammens
Royal Antwerp
£18.2m
Diego Leon
Cerro Porteno
£7m
It certainly wasn’t for a lack of trying, with the Red Devils even making contact to sign Atletico Madrid’s Conor Gallagher on deadline day, but having been unsuccessful in their pursuit, Ruben Amorim will have to make do with what he has until January.
That is despite the fact United have made a very poor start to the new campaign, with former Arsenal player Stewart Robson singling Amorim’s midfield out for criticism in particular, saying: “The 3-4-3 covers all areas of the pitch. But you’ve got to have the right players to do it. Your wing-backs have to be really athletic and your two central midfield players have to be dynamic and dominant midfield players.
“United don’t have any of those qualities. Bruno just doesn’t fit the system.”
It appears as though INEOS may agree with Robson’s assessment, given that they already have one eye on the January transfer window, having recently identified Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia as a potential target.
However, according to a report from The Express, Man United also remain interested in one of their summer transfer targets, and they are planning to hold a meeting with Brighton’s Carlos Baleba in the coming weeks, with the 21-year-old already agreeing personal terms.
United made an approach to sign Baleba in the summer, but Brighton’s £115m valuation deterred them from making a move, and Amorim’s only deadline day addition was goalkeeper Senne Lammens from Royal Antwerp.
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ByDominic Lund Sep 3, 2025 "Exceptional" Baleba tipped to be better than Caicedo
Brighton seem to have an endless conveyor belt of top young players, with Moises Caicedo their record sale at a whopping £115m, and it is no wonder the Seagulls are set to hold out for a similar fee for another exciting prospect.
That is because Glenn Murray believes the youngster could go on to be even better than Caicedo, saying: “Carlos Baleba, as a DM, I think he’s got even more potential than Yves Bissouma and Moises Caicedo.
“Brighton have had quite a rich vein of defensive midfielders coming through. I think this kid’s better than both of those. I think he’s absolutely exceptional.”
The statistics certainly back up Murray’s prediction, with the Brighton starlet already outperforming the Ecuadorian across a number of important metrics for midfielders.
Average per 90
Carlos Baleba
Moises Caicedo
Interceptions
1.55
1.36
Blocks
1.62
1.36
Successful take-ons
1.06
0.75
Aerials won
1.32
0.88
As such, it is exciting news that Man United are looking to get ahead of potential rival suitors by scheduling a meeting with Baleba in the coming weeks.