"That’s not a question" - Liverpool legend takes shots at Manchester United, tells Premier League star not to join them
Liverpool legend John Barnes has warned Brighton & Hove Albion star Kaoru Mitoma against swapping the Seagulls for Manchester United.
Mitoma, 25, is enjoying a breakthrough season with Brighton in the Premier League. He has bagged six goals and four assists in 20 top-flight games, spearheading the team's bid to qualify for Europe.
Impressed by the Japan international's performances, many have tipped him to secure a big-money transfer soon. According to The Daily Mail [via @DeadlineDayLive on Twitter], Manchester United are plotting a summer move for him.
Barnes, though, reckons joining the Red Devils would not be a huge step up for Mitoma. The Liverpool legend believes Brighton are on the same level as the Old Trafford outfit. He told Bonus Code Bets:
"He [Mitoma] is playing for a team in the top six in the country. I don’t know if there’s a higher level than that because he’s playing for a team that can qualify for Europe. Playing at Manchester United isn’t a higher level than playing at Brighton.”
Barnes also advised Mitoma to choose his next club carefully, as it could potentially define his career, saying:
“What he needs to do, obviously, is find a team that plays football that suits him. Because he goes to a team that doesn’t suit him doesn’t mean he’s a bad player, it just means that the football doesn’t suit him. And that’s not a question of a higher or lower level.”
“He has to see the kind of player he is and the team that he wants to go to and do they play the type of football that maximises my potential. And if it doesn’t then he shouldn’t go regardless of the club.”
The former striker brought up Yves Bissouma's transfer from Brighton to Tottenham Hotspur to caution Mitoma about joining Manchester United, saying:
“If you look at Yves Bissouma, he’s not even in the Tottenham team. So it doesn’t matter how good you are, you have to go to a team that’s gonna suit the way you play.”
“In terms of the wide midfield position, Mitoma has good movement, scores goals, works hard, he’s creative. There’s lots of players like that. But once again, having the right club to suit you is the most important thing.”
Bissouma joined Tottenham from Brighton for an initial sum of £25 million last summer. However, he has struggled to establish himself as a regular starter for Spurs, having been restricted to just 807 minutes of league action.
Manchester United target Mitoma is contracted to Brighton till 2025
Brighton signed Mitoma from Japanese club Kawasaki Frontale for a paltry sum of £2.5 million in 2021. The attacker spent a full season on loan at the Seagulls' sister club Royal Union Saint-Gilloise.
Mitoma bagged eight goals and four assists in 29 appearances across competitions for the Belgian club. He then quickly established himself as a regular for the Seagulls on his return last summer.
While the Japanese's performances have attracted interest from the likes of Manchester United, Brighton are not under pressure to sell him. He's contracted to the Premier League club till June 2025.