Manchester United Transfer News Roundup: Red Devils narrowly missed out on Erling Haaland; club eyeing Michael Olise, and more - January 16, 2024
Manchester United have struggled for consistency under Erik ten Hag this season. They have exited the Champions League and the EFL Cup and are now seventh in the league after 21 games, 13 points behind leaders Liverpool, having played a game more.
Meanwhile, the Premier League giants narrowly missed out on Manchester City striker Erling Haaland before he joined RB Salzburg. Elsewhere, the Red Devils are planning a swap deal for Michael Olise.
On that note, here's a look at the key Manchester United transfer stories as on January 16, 2024:
Manchester United narrowly missed out on Erling Haaland
Manchester United were very close to securing the services of Erling Haaland in the summer of 2018, according to senior football scout Bryan King.
The Norwegian striker is the finest in his position in the world and powered Manchester City to a historic continental treble last season. However, it now appears that he was close to moving to the red half of Manchester during his formative years.
Haaland was in Molde and was beginning to catch the eye of scouts across the globe. He eventually left the Norwegian club to join Salzburg in 2018 before moving to Borussia Dortmund in January 2020. The Norwegian arrived at the Etihad in the summer of 2022, and the rest is history.
Speaking to Football Insider, King said that the Red Devils were an hour away from securing Haaland in 2018 before losing out to Salzburg.
"Man United should have definitely signed Haaland. I know the chief Scandavavian scout at United, and he worked really hard to get him over there.
"There was a mix-up at the end of the season, and a lot of people were on holiday at United. They were told that they had to ring Molde at a certain time in the morning," said King.
He continued:
“The guy who was handling Haaland’s deal from Molde to Salzburg was Jim Solbakken and he has good connections with Man United. He said that if the call is not in by 10 o’clock, then Haaland will go to Salzburg.
"The people at United who made the call made it an hour late. They should have rung at nine, but they rang at 10, which is 11 in Norway. That caused the deal not to go through!"
Manchester United were also interested in the player in 2019, but he snubbed a move to Old Trafford to move to Signal Iduna Park.
Red Devils eyeing Michael Olise
Manchester United are planning a player-plus-cash offer to convince Crystal Palace to part ways with Michael Olise, according to ESPN.
The Red Devils are eager to take the French forward to Old Trafford this year, but prising him away from Selhurst Park won’t be an easy affair. Manchester United are ready to include Aaron Wan-Bissaka in their offer to sweeten the deal, though.
The Englishman has failed to nail down the right-back spot under Ten Hag, although he has done a decent job. However, with Diogo Dalot already in the team and the club linked to a new right-back, Wan-Bissaka could be allowed to leave.
Meanwhile, a new attacker is a more pressing need for Ten Hag, and Olise represents an in-form target, who's also proven in the league. Chelsea and Liverpool also have their eyes on the 22-year-old, who has five goals and one assist from nine game this season.
Manchester United not in talks to sign new striker, says Fabrizio Romano
Manchester United are yet to decide on their striker target for this year, according to acclaimed transfer guru Fabrizio Romano.
The Red Devils have been very poor in the final third this season, despite investing big money on Rasmus Hojlund last summer. The Danish striker is yet to find his feet since arriving from Atalanta, and the club are heavily tipped to sign a No. 9 this month.
However, speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Romano said that Manchester United are not in talks for a new striker yet.
“Guirassy has an active release clause. Other players could be available on loan.
"But at the moment, Man Utd have not decided to proceed with any club-to-club negotiation yet. So, I think it’s still in the early stages of discussions," said Romano.
He continued:
"It’s still unclear who the player they want is and what kind of investment they want on a striker.
"So, it's still a quiet situation around United, and I think they will take their time before they say, ‘Okay, we want to go for that player.’ It's still not at that stage.”
The Red Devils have scored just 24 goals in 21 games in the league this season, the lowest among the top-10 in the league.