Man Utd: Bruno Fernandes to Barca? Who might buy Ten Hag squad?
Amid the expectation of a clear-out at Manchester United, we’ve gone through Erik ten Hag’s squad to decide who might buy them and for how much. Bruno to Barca?
Now Sir Jim Ratcliffe has assumed control of football matters at Old Trafford, summer sales are expected to raise funds for the new players Erik ten Hag – or whoever is in charge of United next season – so desperately needs.
The Red Devils are hamstrung in some cases by the contracts they have offered their current players, and some players very obviously are not for sale. But let’s pretend they might be.
Here is where we see every player in United’s squad being sold…
We did this last April, and the picture looks very different.
Andre Onana
Age: 27
Contracted until: 2028 with one-year option
There have been whispers around United being open to replacing Onana already, and though there are more pressing concerns, it’s understandable why the Red Devils might be keeping their options open. The stats suggest Onana has done alright since joining from Inter Milan for £47million and he’s been kept busier than almost any other goalkeeper, but the ease with which he has often been beaten makes for an underwhelming impact.
Inter tend to be good at taking back players they have sold for big money, and he has enough credit in the bank to remain an option when the Serie A leaders get around to replacing 35-year-old Yann Sommer.
Destination: Inter Milan on loan with option to buy
Altay Bayindir
Age: 25
Contracted until: 2027 with one-year option
Despite Onana’s struggles, Ten Hag has resisted the temptation to bring in Turkey international Bayindir. Even when Onana was away at AFCON, there was only one game, away at Newport, for the £4.3million stand-in to stand in. Bayindir, presumably, has grander ambitions than picking splinters and doubtless he would have options at home and on the rest of the continent.
Destination: Sevilla for £8million
Lisandro Martinez
Age: 26
Contracted until: 2027 with one-year option
‘Old Trafford would burn if United took an offer on the Butcher’ is what we wrote last year. Now, Martinez’s importance is no less obvious but his fragility means the Red Devils cannot afford to rely on the centre-back. Still, with so many other defenders being ushered towards the door, it would take a silly offer for United to consider selling.
Destination: Bayern Munich for £70million
Raphael Varane
Age: 30
Contracted until: 2024 with one-year option
United have no intention of exercising their option to extend Varane’s deal given the terms he currently enjoys. The former France defender has been heavily linked with a move to Saudi but he’s only 30; has he not got one more European adventure in him? If Real want depth in their defence, bringing Varane back for free would make sense.
Destination: Real Madrid as a free agent
READ: Antony and gang put Man Utd rock bottom in ranking of value gained or lost on transfers
Harry Maguire
Age: 30
Contracted until: 2025 with one-year option
United tried to shunt Maguire out last summer but the England defender was too stubborn to shift. Since then, he’s re-established some credibility and been one of United’s better players through a trying season.
Destination: West Ham for £30million
Victor Lindelof
Age: 29
Contracted until: 2025
Lindelof has also had more prominence than he might have been expecting this season, prompting United to exercise the one-year option they had on his contract. He will enter that final year in the summer, when United must either cash in or keep at risk of losing the Swede for nothing next year.
Destination: AC Milan for £12million
Jonny Evans
Age: 36
Contracted until: 2024
Evans was an unintentionally savvy signing last summer, when he initially joined to make up the numbers on the pre-season tour to USA. If he can maintain his present standards around his 37th birthday, then another 12-month deal could be in the offing. If not, Evans will leave Old Trafford for a second time.
Destination: Everton for free
Luke Shaw
Age: 28
Contracted until: 2027
Again, like Martinez, the left-back is vital to United, but Shaw isn’t available consistently enough to rely on. London calling?
Destination: Chelsea for £40million
Tyrell Malacia
Age: 24
Contracted until: 2026 with one-year option
Malacia was raw last season and he would have had plenty of opportunities to push on this term. But the left-back has missed more games than Shaw due to a knee injury. A loan, perhaps to Bayer Leverksusen post-pillage, might help Malacia make the necessary development required to be a United regular.
Destination: Bayer Leverkusen on loan
Diogo Dalot
Age: 24
Contracted until: 2028
Dalot’s status is as high as it has ever been since moving to Old Trafford almost six years ago, but United are said to be in the market for a right-back in the summer.
Destination: Inter Milan in part-exchange for Denzel Dumfries
Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Age: 26
Contracted until: 2025
Ten Hag has turned Wan-Bissaka into a competent right-back to the point that he can now cross the halfway line without bouts of dizziness. But still United want an upgrade.
Destination: Crystal Palace for £20million
Casemiro
Age: 32
Contracted until: 2026 with one-year-option
Last year, Casemiro was being measured up for a statue on the forecourt. Now, even signing him from Real Madrid is being widely viewed as a mistake. As usual, the truth is somewhere in the middle but there is little doubt that United should take the chance to shift his wages on to someone else’s books if they get the chance.
Destination: Al-Nassr for £20million
Kobbie Mainoo
Age: 18
Contracted until: 2027 with one-year-option
Going nowhere. But let’s pretend…
Destination: Barcelona for £80million
Christian Eriksen
Age: 32
Contracted until: 2025
The Denmark star’s prominence has declined this season and though United kept him through January, a summer exit looks likely.
Destination: Ajax for £10million
Scott McTominay
Age: 27
Contracted until: 2025 with one-year option
The Scotland midfielder always features on the lists of likely departees but then highlights his importance with crucial goals. McTominay is unlikely ever to make himself one of the first names in the XI, but he’s damn useful to have around. Still, if he decides to seek status elsewhere, then…
Destination: Newcastle for £30million
Mason Mount
Age: 25
Contracted until: 2028 with one-year option
United’s forgotten man. Correcting their mistake would cost the Red Devils a significant portion of the £55million they paid Chelsea last summer for a position that really was not a priority.
Destination: Chelsea for £35million
Bruno Fernandes
Age: 29
Contracted until: 2026 with one-year option
The fear for United fans is that one day soon, Fernandes decides he’s had enough of this sh*t. Without him, things would be unspeakably worse. Saudi clubs are said to be keen but Fernandes would prefer, and attract, interest from European superpowers. For reasons we can’t explain, we think he would suit Barca, assuming they could yank a lever or two.
Destination: Barcelona for £80million.
Read more: Bruno Fernandes among Premier League’s top three most creative players
Alejandro Garnacho
Age: 19
Contracted until: 2028
One of the few forwards who can feel assured of his place in United’s attack for the foreseeable and the Red Devils can feel secure in the knowledge few clubs can afford what they would demand for the Argentina international.
Destination: PSG for £75million
Antony
Age: 24
Contracted until: 2027 with one-year option
Oh, boy. The only way anyone takes a punt on Antony after a miserable couple of seasons at Old Trafford is if they can try before they buy. His former club know what the Brazilian can offer.
Destination: Ajax on loan
Read more: Manchester United should learn from Arsenal and Arteta if they really want Antony ‘value’
Marcus Rashford
Age: 26
Contracted until: 2028
The prospect of selling Rashford would have been a symbol of the shambles United have become in recent years. But now it is starting to make sense. The academy graduate so often looks like he would rather be somewhere else, so if a decent offer arrives, perhaps United should give him what he seems to want.
Destination: PSG for £85million
Rasmus Hojlund
Age: 21
Contracted until: 2028 with one-year option
Hojlund is just getting started at Old Trafford – and once Anthony Martial skulks off, he will be the only centre-forward remaining at the club. So he’s going nowhere. But that’s not the point here…
Destination: Napoli for £65million of their Victor Osimhen money.
Anthony Martial
Age: 28
Contracted until: 2024 with one-year-option
Someone will take a punt on Martial, despite all the legitimate reasons why they should steer well clear.
Destination: Galatasaray for free
Amad Diallo
Age: 21
Contracted until: 2025
Amad finally looks set to get an opportunity to stake his claim for a right-wing spot while Hojlund is injured and Garnacho is needed on the left. He needs to take it if he wants a future at Old Trafford otherwise United will surely look to sell in the summer.
Destination: RB Leipzig for £15million
