Manchester United Notebook: Next midfield signing, coaching addition and AC Milan date (original) (raw)

It's one down for Manchester United in midfield this summer, and one to go. Or maybe two? The exact nature of the plans to revamp the centre of the pitch remains a little uncertain as business cranks up.

United's £38.3million deal for Ederson is the first piece of the jigsaw and Old Trafford recruitment chiefs are confident they have a bargain. The Brazilian turns 27 next month and isn't in his country's World Cup squad this summer, but United have watched him for a while and the data looks good as well.

He fills the Brazilian-shaped hole in midfield after Casemiro's departure and attention now turns to adding a second midfield signing. As it stands, Mateus Fernandes is the most likely to follow.

United like the 21-year-old, whose claims have been pushed forward by club captain Bruno Fernandes, and it's understood the youngster is keen to make the move to Old Trafford.

Like Ederson, Fernandes isn't heading to the World Cup. He played 64 minutes for Portugal Under-21s in their 4-0 win against Northern Ireland Under-21s in Estoril on Wednesday, so there is no difficulty in getting a deal done.

For now, the biggest hiccup is West Ham's demands. The Hammers paid £38million to sign Fernandes from Southampton a year ago and are thought to be looking for a fee in the region of £80million now. United will seek to considerably lower that and they will have a better chance if reports of interest from Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain don't firm up.

Elliot Anderson has been United's top target for most of the year, but the 23-year-old still has his sights set on Manchester City, who have had a bid rejected by Nottingham Forest. Brighton's price tag on Carlos Baleba remains prohibitive.

Aurelien Tchouameni could remain one to watch. United have a long-standing interest in the 26-year-old France international, but it remains to be seen if Real Madrid will come to the table.

Florentino Perez tried to shut it down earlier this week, insisting Tchouameni wouldn't be leaving the club, but there are a lot of moving parts at the Bernabeu this summer and some in Spain don't believe the situation is necessarily closed.

Perez faces reelection against rival Enrique Riquelme this weekend. If he succeeds in holding on to power, Jose Mourinho will return to the dugout, although a hefty compensation fee might be required to get him out of Benfica.

Riquelme has told his supporters he will sign Rodri if he wins power, and Perez could also pursue the Manchester City midfielder if he wins. Any move for a big-name midfielder could yet lead to a departure and the dressing room showdown between Tchouameni and club captain Federico Valverde is something Mourinho will need to smooth over.

Coaching ticket

United secured all of Michael Carrick's coaching staff on new two-year deals when the 44-year-old penned his own contract extension and club sources are delighted with the impact they have made.

Carrick will continue to be assisted by Steve Holland, Jonathan Woodgate, Jonny Evans and Travis Binnion next season, with Craig Mawson staying on as goalkeeper coach.

But one more addition is considered likely ahead of a much more intense schedule next season, and it's likely to be someone with a set-piece speciality. A return for Andreas Georgson is one possibility, with the Dane leaving Tottenham when Thomas Frank was sacked.

United officials are aware of how tight-knit the coaching staff have become under Carrick, however, and there is a desire to get the appointment right to complement that group, rather than risk upsetting the balance. No decision is likely to be made just yet.

One coach Carrick does know well is Aaron Danks. The 42-year-old Brummie was on his coaching staff at Middlesbrough and became more common to a worldwide audience while patrolling the touchline during Bayern Munich's 5-4 Champions League semi-final first leg defeat to PSG, when Vincent Kompany was suspended.

Danks is now an assistant coach to Kompany at Bayern Munich, so there appears to be no natural role for him at Old Trafford, with Holland considered Carrick's No.2.

Onana's next move

Andre Onana signed off from his loan spell at Trabzonspor as a Turkish Cup winner, and his exuberant celebrations with the fans showed he was ending it as a popular player.

As it stands, the 30-year-old is likely to return to pre-season training at Carrington in early July, but it's been made clear that he has no future at Old Trafford.

Senne Lammens is the new No.1 and Onana isn't the right fit as a back-up goalkeeper, partly due to his wages, which will return to around £170,000-a-week after United qualified for the Champions League.

That makes it difficult to find a buyer on a permanent deal and another loan has to be considered a possibility at the moment

Pre-season plans

United have announced friendlies against Wrexham, Rosenborg, Atletico Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Leeds so far, but there is still one more game likely to be confirmed.

Although it hasn't been announced yet and is now just a couple of months away, United are still expected to travel to Wroclaw for a game against AC Milan on August 15, the week before the Premier League season begins.

It's not clear why the game hasn't yet been confirmed, but as things stand, it is still pencilled into the schedule for pre-season.

Dispatch from Carrington

It won't attract many headlines, but Thursday's confirmation of a new deal for 40-year-old goalkeeper Tom Heaton will be toasted internally at United.

In the social media age of winning transfer windows and wanting the shiny new toy, extending the stay of a goalkeeper who has made three appearances in five seasons into a sixth year will hardly be considered glamorous.

But you only need to listen to Casemiro speak about Heaton on Rio Ferdinand's podcast recently to understand his value, or ask Senne Lammens about the impact the former England goalkeeper has had on him in his first year at the club.

Heaton staying on is a big deal.

Quote of the week

"I can't speak highly enough of him. I said to the lads after his first session, 'I can see something special in him,' so I was glad he got on after the week he has had. In my first couple of Scotland squads, I played with his dad. And, for me, in my first session, he [Darren Fletcher] stood out a mile. Fortunately for Scotland, his son is pretty similar."

High praise for Tyler Fletcher from experienced Scotland midfielder Kenny McLean. Fletcher is heading to the World Cup with Scotland on the back of just 17 minutes for Manchester United. He will surely return from the tournament a better player, even if he doesn't get on the pitch.

What to look out for next week

The Real Madrid presidential election on Sunday offers plenty of intrigue, even if it's hard to see Perez losing. The appointment of Mourinho should be confirmed soon afterwards and developments in the Spanish capital will speed up after that.

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