Man Utd's key advantage in signing 'next Tchouameni'

Stuart Telford

• 31 Mar 2023 16:25 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United have a key advantage in the race to sign Manu Kone - who has been compared to Aurelien Tchouameni - with Paris Saint-Germain unlikely to bid on him this summer.

Kone has been attracting interest from around the continent this season after impressing in Germany with Borussia Monchengladbach, with Liverpool, Newcastle and Bayern Munich also linked with a bid in recent weeks.

The France under-21 international is reportedly on the cusp of breaking into Didier Deschamps' senior squad with his three tackles and two successful take-ons per game putting him among the very best in the Bundesliga this season.

READ: Kone provides update on transfer plans amid Chelsea, Man Utd and PSG interest

PSG might seem like a natural home for the most talented French players, but according to French football specialist Jonathan Johnson, they won't be making a move for the Parisian native this summer.

PSG's other projects

"As long as the contract situations of Sergio Ramos and Lionel Messi remain unresolved ahead of the summer, it's hard to see PSG winning the race for Kone, and it's difficult to see them doing much else with their squad," he wrote in his CaughtOffside column.

"Manchester United seem to be one of those [looking for a midfielder like Kone]… There'll be the temptation to draw comparisons with someone like Aurelien Tchouameni, who made the big move from Monaco to Real Madrid last year, but to be honest I don't see Kone being ready to make quite that same jump right now."

READ: Ten Hag gives clues to Man Utd's summer plans with Shaw's new deal

Tchouameni may be ahead of Kone in his development, but then the latter, valued at €19.2m by FootballTransfers' in-house algorithm, won't cost the €100m total it took Madrid to prise Tchouameni from Monaco last summer.

United could certainly do with a midfield partner for Casemiro. Christian Eriksen is injured but prefers playing further forward than the double pivot anyway, while Marcel Sabitzer, who has impressed on loan from Bayern Munich, might have a second chance at his parent club now Thomas Tuchel has replaced Julian Nagelsmann.