Man Utd shortlist in-demand Brighton pair

Stuart Telford

• 9 Apr 2023 13:03 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United are interested in Brighton duo Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo as they look to bolster their midfield next summer, according to reports.

United's midfield have been rocked by injury in recent weeks, with Casemiro - a successful €80 million arrival from Real Madrid - joining Christian Eriksen on the sidelines.

Bruno Fernandes is a No.10 by trade, but he was used at the base Man Utd's midfield in their 2-0 victory over Everton on Saturday, earning high praise from Erik ten Hag in the process.

READ: Man Utd target next David Beckham

But that doesn't change the fact that Ten hag wants to bolster his midfield options next summer, and Brighton pair Mac Allister and Caicedo would fit the bill.

'Caicedo and Mac Allister on the shortlist'

"Erik ten Hag will target a central midfielder for Manchester United's squad this summer, with Brighton pair Moises Caicedo and Alexis Mac Allister among the shortlist of players considered as potential signings," report The Telegraph.

Caicedo tried to force a move to Arsenal in January after Brighton rejected a significant bid for the Ecuadorean, but he has since signed a new contract keeping him at the Amex until 2027 with a club option to extend that by another year.

READ: Ranking Mac Allister's most suitable summer destinations

Mac Allister was already in high demand before the World Cup, but his performances in helping Argentina win it sent speculation into overdrive, with Manchester City also credited with an interest, seeing him as a long-term successor to Ilkay Gundogan.

In both cases, United plan to find out if there are release clauses in their contracts, although as it stands it would cost them a pretty penny to sign both.

Caicedo is valued at €29.3m by FootballTransfers in-house algorithm, although the Arsenal offer that Brighton rejected was closer to €100m, while Mac Allister is rated at €31.4m.

Signing both might impact upon Fernandes the defensive midfielder anyway.

"When Casemiro and Eriksen were available there was no need to bring Bruno down but when you miss them you have to bring a solution from the back to bring the build-up, progress the ball to attack," Ten Hag said.

"We found the idea to bring Bruno down more deeper and he's doing brilliant, he's playing brilliant games."