Revealed: The reason Man Utd didn’t sign Sergej Milinkovic-Savic

FT Desk
FT Desk
  • 30 Aug 2022 05:40 CDT
  • 3 min read
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic playing for Lazio
© ProShots

Manchester United have been in the market for a new midfielder, but it seems unlikely they’re going to get a new one before the transfer deadline on Thursday evening.

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The Red Devils targeted a host of midfielders over the summer, and even spent 17 weeks working on a deal for Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong.

They agreed a fee for De Jong, but no move materialized and there were issues over the player’s deferred wages that he is owed by Barcelona.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic was another one of the targets for the club, and Manchester United reportedly held talks with his representatives, but no move materialized.

Lazio demand big fee for Milinkovic-Savic

Lazio were demanding a big fee for the player, something Manchester United were unwilling to pay, and that move too, never happened with interest cooling down from the English club.

Milinkovic-Savic’s agent, Mateja Kezman, has been speaking about the Serbian star’s future, and has revealed why Manchester United didn’t make a move for the player.

He was asked why clubs didn’t make a move for his client, as other such as Juventus were also interested in him, and explained that Lazio were demanding too much money.

“We have often talked about him in the past, but now the Milinkovic-Savic project is too expensive for them (Juventus),” Kezman said about the midfielder’s future.

There was a belief that €100 million was the fee quoted by Lazio President Claudio Lotito, and that put off many clubs across Europe.

Milinkovic-Savic will be happy to stay at Lazio having had so many successful years there – over time, he’s become one of the league’s best players.

He has been linked to Manchester United several times in the past – dating all the way back to the time Jose Mourinho was at Old Trafford – but a concrete move has never been made for the player.

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