Double Ratcliffe raid for Man Utd has fans fuming - and Barcelona too

Tom Weber

Updated: 7 Jun 2024 17:17 BST
4 min read

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Man Utd, 2023/24 — © IMAGO

Manchester United could raid sister club Nice this summer, according to French media.

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The Red Devils hold a long-standing interest in Nice's key players Khephren Thuram and Jean-Clair Todibo. In recent weeks and, in the case of Thuram, months, talk of a move to Old Trafford had gone a bit cold.

Thuram is coming off a poor season, having seen his creativity shackled by then-coach Francesco Farioli, while Todibo had fallen down Man Utd's shortlist of centre-back targets, with Everton starlet Jarrad Branthwaite the priority option.

Now, however, L'Equipe reports that Man Utd remain firmly in the frame for both players and they could have two bargains on their hands. If what is being reported about Todibo, in particular, turns out to be correct, Nice fans will rightfully feel aggrieved - as will Barcelona.

Todibo and Thuram on the market

That is because the French outlet is reporting that Nice could settle for as little as €25 million to let go of Todibo, with the defender openly flirting with a departure in recent weeks.

This would be a bargain for one of the best defenders in France, who previously had a €60m price tag. His former club Barcelona, who own a sizeable sell-on percentage and need money, won't be happy about this. Aston Villa, who are now said to have entered the race, and Man Utd certainly will.

Thuram, meanwhile, is expected to cost between €20m and €30m, though it was also previously claimed that he could go for as little as €15m due to only having a year left on his contract. Additionally, it had also been posited that he could do what brother Marcus did ahead of his move to Inter: run down his deal and leave for free next year.

Either way, Nice fans will be angry with INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe - and for good reason. Man Utd's sister club are in a bit of a pickle right now, having lost coach Farioli to Ajax and sporting director Florent Ghisolfi to Roma. The former has been replaced by Lens boss Franck Haise and the latter by Rennes chief Florian Maurice.

The seemingly impending exit of two key players to an affiliate club for very little money will vindicate the opinion of Ghisolfi and the fans, who believe that INEOS are not being ambitious enough with Nice.