Winners and losers of Leny Yoro's transfer to Man Utd

Jacque Talbot

• 18 Jul 2024 20:00 BST
• 4 min read

Leny Yoro has completed his €70 million transfer from Lille to Manchester United

Despite interest from Real Madrid, Ineos have managed to secure one of the most highly rated young centre backs in the world.

Man Utd have hande a five-year deal to a player who made 41 appearances in all competitions for Lille last season and scored three goals.

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It’s thought United will pay an initial €62m. But who are the winners and losers of this move?

Winner - Dan Ashworth

Newcastle and Man Utd agreed compensation and Dan Ashworth became the new sporting director at Old Trafford. For a club with such a terrible record on the transfer market, the former Magpies chief's latest signing is nothing short of a coup and Yoro coming in will result in plenty of brownie points for Ashworth.

Winner - Ineos

Ineos wanted to revamp the whole structure at Man Utd. Indeed, the club have overpaid on the market and the firm wanted to amend this. Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the club’s new co-owner, said earlier this summer: "I think Real Madrid have done a fabulous job. There's an interesting statistic. If you look at the 10 seasons since Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill left. Manchester United's net spend on players is £1.1bn. United have not been mean with the chequebook.

"Real Madrid's over the same time is £200m, which is surprising when you hear that, because today they have a squad where six or seven players are valued at more than €100m and Manchester United don't have any.

"And Real Madrid have probably built the finest football stadium in the world using the same chequebook."

Winner - Lille

Lille received two offers for Yoro, one coming from Man Utd and the other from Real Madrid. The La Liga club’s previous offer worth a total €30m with bonuses included was rejected by the Ligue 1 side, while Man Utd offered double that.

Yoro wanted to head to Real Madrid over Man Utd initially, but Lille were hoping he would change his mind. Luckily for them, the teenager finally did and Lille have received more bang for their buck.

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Loser - Real Madrid

Real Madrid have lost out to one of Europe’s youngest bright stars. It’s hardly a massive loss, but if Yoro’s potential is realised, it could come back to haunt them over the next several years.

Loser - Harry Maguire

Harry Maguire was a substitute for a lot of the 2023/24 season, having fallen lower in the pecking order. Now that Yoro has come in, he will see his game time dry up still further. The former England international is entering his twilight years and must now be looking for a new club.

Loser - Liverpool

Liverpool were very interested in Yoro. They told their reporters as much, knowing that the optics of losing the defender to Real Madrid wouldn’t be so bad. But instead, their arch-rivals Man Utd have stolen the march and the youngster.

This isn’t a great look for the club by any measure - and their inactivity on the transfer front this window will no doubt be frustrating their supporters a great deal.

Loser - De Ligt

Matthijs de Ligt was ready and waiting for Man Utd. He was even prepared to lower his wages from Bayern Munich. A deal looked to be nearing and then Man Utd moved for Yoro instead. It’s not clear whether Man Utd will make a return for the Dutchman but a deal looks as unlikely as ever now.