Manchester United's Midfield Rebuild: Kone and Baleba Updates
Manchester United’s midfield rebuild has gathered pace this summer, but a key target is stalling – and waiting for a very different call.
Kone waits on PSG as United circle
INEOS have moved quickly to reshape the middle of the pitch, bringing in Andrey Santos from Chelsea and Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa. Two smart additions. Two different profiles. Yet Michael Carrick wants more.
With the Champions League looming and expectations to at least challenge in the Premier League, United are hunting a third midfielder who can change the temperature of big games. Manu Kone has been pushed towards the top of that list.
TEAMtalk’s Graeme Bailey revealed on July 9 that United are keen on the AS Roma man, who enhanced his reputation with France at the 2026 World Cup. Roma’s stance has been clear: £50m or nothing. The Italian press then went a step further this week, claiming Kone already has an agreement in principle on personal terms with United, who are said to be readying a bid of around €50m (£42.6m, $57m).
Corriere dello Sport painted United as the “club with the most potential for the deal” and detailed ongoing contacts, with Kone’s representative D’Amico waiting for a decisive move from Old Trafford. The suggestion in Rome is that even an offer close to €50m may not be enough to drag him out of Serie A.
Atletico Madrid, Al-Ahli and Chelsea have all been linked, but a new twist has complicated United’s pursuit.
According to Il Tempo, Kone is holding out for Paris Saint-Germain. Last season’s Ligue 1 and Champions League winners have not yet made a concrete move, yet the report states the 25-year-old is waiting for a call from Luis Enrique’s side.
He has told intermediaries he is open to a move to Manchester United. He is still hoping PSG come first.
Right now, that is the tension at the heart of this chase: United prepared to act, Roma prepared to sell at the right price, the player’s eyes drifting towards Paris while Paris stay silent.
Baleba back on the radar
United cannot afford to sit still while Kone waits by the phone. They have another name in bold on their list: Carlos Baleba.
The Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder wanted the move to Old Trafford last season, but the numbers were wild. Brighton were talking about more than £100m for the 22-year-old Cameroon international, a fee that forced United to walk away.
The admiration, though, never really faded.
On July 21, Bailey outlined United’s thinking. Carrick and the recruitment team want a midfielder who can genuinely shore up the defensive side of the game. In an ideal scenario, they would simply go and get Baleba. They “absolutely love his game”, even after what they view as an inconsistent campaign.
Internally, United value him at around £50m. Brighton see it very differently. Even before Elliot Anderson briefly became the most expensive British player ever – a mark since overtaken by Morgan Rogers – Brighton were holding firm at figures “well north of £75m and closer to £100m”.
That kind of valuation immediately drags him out of United’s realistic range, unless something dramatic shifts on the south coast.
Sky Sports reported on July 23 that both Baleba and Kone are being “strongly considered” by United as they weigh up their next move in the market. One is waiting for PSG, the other is locked behind Brighton’s price wall.
United have already landed two midfielders. They want a third who can tilt the balance of their season. The question now is simple: who blinks first – Roma, Brighton, PSG, or Manchester United?
