Sir Jim Ratcliffe's SIX-man Man Utd summer transfer shortlist

Stuart Telford

• 25 Apr 2024 17:00 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United are set for an overhaul this summer once Sir Jim Ratcliffe gets his feet under his desk at Old Trafford.

Ratcliffe, formerly the UK's richest man, paid the Glazer family £1.3 billion for a 27.7 per cent stake in the club he supports in December, but this summer will be the first transfer window that he will oversee from start to finish.

It is understood that ageing and injury-prone big earners such as former Real Madrid pair Casemiro and Raphael Varane are for the chop, while Ratcliffe has reportedly told the club that he wants to unearth the next Kylian Mbappe rather than signing a ready-made one for silly money.

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There could well be more outs than ins as the Red Devils look to balance the books, but a six-man shortlist has been revealed in a report by The Mirror.

Man Utd dream team?

"Among United's targets are Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite, Bayer Leverkusen's defensive duo Edmond Tapsoba and Jeremie Frimpong, as well as Wolves midfielder Joao Gomes and his teammate, winger Pedro Neto, and Borussia Dortmund forward Donyell Malen," they write.

FootballTransfers exclusively revealed United's interest in Branthwaite last August. He and Leverkusen stalwart Tabsoba make sense as priority signings as centre-backs amid United' recent injury crisis in the position.

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Tabsoba and Frimpong might be minded to stay at Leverkusen for a bit longer now that Xabi Alonso has spurned Liverpool to stay on with the recently minted Bundesliga champions.

Of the Wolves pair, United are set to face significant competition from Arsenal for Neto in particular, while Malen's arrival could be facilitated by a swap deal with Borussia Dortmund involving Jadon Sancho.

The former England winger's Old Trafford future would seem to be inextricably interwoven with Erik ten Hag's, with the Dutchman's position as manager looking increasingly tenuous.