Man Utd to DROP interest in top transfer target as alternatives revealed

Tom Weber

Updated: 17 Jun 2024 13:41 CDT
4 min read

Erik ten Hag, Manchester United — © NOS/FootballTransfers

Manchester United are ready to move on from Jarrad Branthwaite unless Everton lower their demands, according to a report.

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One of the breakout stars of the bygone Premier League season, Branthwaite is among the most admired centre-back talents in European football. Man Utd have been keen on him for months and have been getting serious about their interest in recent days.

FootballTransfers has been exclusively reporting on Erik ten Hag's desire to see Branthwaite in a Red Devils shirt since last summer and earlier this year we were able to reveal that the centre-back is one of Man Utd's top targets for the upcoming window.

Last week, Man Utd finally launched their first formal bid, which was rejected out of hand by Everton. Man Utd had tabled a 'derisory' offer of just a little over €40 million for a player valued by the Toffees at north of €80m.

The Manchester giants were trying to put pressure on Everton with their lowball offer in hopes that the Merseyside outfit may take the bait and sell cheap due to their financial issues. However, this gambit could actually now backfire, with Everton poised to sell midfielder Amadou Onana instead in order to be able to keep Branthwaite on board for longer.

Man Utd to move on?

FootballTransfers understands that Man Utd are considering making a new offer and this has now been backed up by Sky Sports. However, the report states that Ten Hag and company will move on to different targets should Everton refuse to budge from their current demands.

These targets include Crystal Palace star Marc Guehi, who has just been linked with a swap deal with Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Jean-Clair Todibo of INEOS sister club Nice and Lille wonderkid Leny Yoro, who is currently waiting for Real Madrid to make a formal offer.

Crystal Palace are keen to keep Guehi at the club and value the centre-back at over €70m - and if he keeps performing like he did against Serbia in England's Euro 2024 opener, his stocks will rise even further. This means that he won't be significantly cheaper than Branthwaite, which is a potential problem for cash-strapped Man Utd.