Manchester United issued a brutal ultimatum to seal the £29m signing Patrick Dorgu, Lecce chiefs have revealed.
The left-back completed a move to Old Trafford over the closing days of the January transfer window. He put pen to paper on a five-and-a-half year deal to become Ruben Amorim’s first signing as Red Devils boss.
And while United eventually got their man, they did face competition, specifically from Napoli. But chiefs at the Italian club claimed that United were willing to pay above market value to seal Dorgu’s signature.
All that remained after that point was to convince Lecce, who were keen to shelve a deal until the summer. And the club’s president Saverio Sticchi Damiani has revealed that they were forced to cash-in on Dorgu due to United issuing a ‘now or never’ warning over a deal. He said: “It is our record transfer and it happens in our moment of great economic health.
“‘It was not a planned operation, it was not done to fill critical issues of the past. It brings us wealth from all points of view and the possibility of making technical and structural investments.
"We said several times that Dorgu would not leave in January, and now I will explain why the opposite happened. Manchester United arrived, who made themselves heard with us and with the boy’s entourage, receiving an official response from us that I leave here, in which we said that we had no intention of letting Dorgu leave in January. And not talking about figures, not asking for increases.
“This, instead of stopping United, had the opposite effect. Manchester insisted, we asked several times to postpone everything until the summer, also promising the young man that he would not miss the opportunity.
“For us too it was a historic step, we just wanted to do it in July. The English communicated to us their desire, the club and their coach, to be immediate. There was an ultimatum – ‘now or never’ – also giving this message to the player himself.
“You cannot judge Dorgu, you are 20 years old and Manchester United come to you with an offer like that. The combination of these factors led us to think that we would have gone from being consistent to being stupidly obstinate.”
Dorgu could be in line for his United debut over the weekend. Amorim’s side take on Leicester in the FA Cup fourth round in a game that signals Ruud van Nistelrooy’s return to Old Trafford.