According to Manchester Evening News, Man United leaders admit that reaching an agreement with Brighton on the Carlos Baleba deal is very difficult. They said that this is a "too complicated" deal to be completed this summer.
The Athletic also confirmed that Man United has no plans to continue recruiting Carlos Baleba before the transfer window closes. The leaders of both sides had preliminary discussions on an agreement but were unsuccessful.
The price for Brighton to " release" is equivalent to the amount Chelsea spent on Moices Caicedo (115 million pounds). This is beyond Man United's ability to pay at the moment. The "Red Devils" also admitted that despite their great desire for Carlos Baleba and great interest, the 2004-born star has only had 2 seasons in the Premier League, is still in the process of development so they cannot take risks.
Another reason for the deal's failure is that Brighton lost many key players last summer. Joao Pedro, Simon Adingra and Pervis Estupinan have all left the "Seagulls" when they joined Chelsea, Sunderland and AC Milan respectively, while striker Evan Ferguson was loaned to AS Roma.
Previously, British media reported that Brighton coach - Fabian Hurzeler was confident that Carlos Baleba would continue to stay at Amex for at least another season. He also spoke about Baleba's reaction to the transfer rumors:
I dont see him changing at all. Baleba has only changed her hairstyle, which is the only change in the past two weeks. Otherwise, he is still in a very good state, enjoying time with his teammates, happy to be a part of Brighton. Baleba really appreciates the process they have gone through last season. Therefore, he can completely start in the opening match against Fulham".
The above shares are a mental boost for Brighton but a blow to Man United's ambitions. Last season, the midfield was one of the weaknesses that caused the "Red Devils" to suffer the worst record in Premier League history. However, up to now, they have not been able to reinforce that important area.
Currently, Man United is also facing obstacles in the reserve goal - Morten Hjulmand of Sporting Lisbon. The Danish midfielder was Amorim's favorite student when they were both in Portugal, valued at about 50 million pounds and praised by the M.U captain for his "heavy spirit" and leadership qualities, even giving him the captain's armband.
However, according to the Portuguese press, the deal is unlikely to happen in the summer of 2025. This comes from the fact that Hjulmand's £68 million release clause (80 million Euros) expired on June 15, plus Sporting, after selling Viktor Gyokeres to Arsenal, did not want to part with any more key players.
Returning to Baleba, the regrettable thing for Man United is that they have reached an individual agreement with the Cameroonian midfielder. The 2004-born star was very excited to move to Old Trafford but the high price from Brighton was a big barrier.
In fact, Man United's midfield could have been much more advanced when they completed the liquidation of players not in Ruben Amorim's plan early. From the beginning of the summer, the "Red Devils" publicly announced the sale of 5 players in the squad. However, they have only successfully loaned Rashford to Barca. The remaining names such as Garnacho, Sancho, Hojlund or Antonyv are still waiting for the future. If they earn a large sum of money from the contract liquidation, Man United will probably be ready to go into the country in the Carlos Baleba deal.
However, the "Red Devils" still have plans to strengthen the midfield as soon as possible, especially since Toby Collyer joined West Bromwich Albion on loan. The 21-year-old star wants to stay to compete for a starting position, but the M.U leadership wants him to play regularly to accumulate experience.
Surprisingly, Man United did not approach Joao Palhinha before he joined Tottenham Hotspur on loan from Bayern Munich. Palhinha was a student of Ruben Amorim at Sporting Lisbon, then made a strong impression in the Premier League for Fulham.
