Man Utd's stance on moving for Carlos Baleba alternative after suffering transfer blow

Manchester United are still keen to sign a No.6 holding midfielder in the summer transfer window, but have moved on from Carlos Baleba due to Brighton's sky-high asking price

Manchester United are still weighing up the possibility of signing a central midfielder in the remainder of the summer transfer window after moving on from Carlos Baleba.

United have spent £200million on Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko this summer and are now trying to offload unwanted players. They are trying to sell Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund to open up the possibility of more additions.

While bolstering their attack was the priority for Ruben Amorim this summer, there are other areas that he would also like to strengthen. One of them is at the base of midfield, where Casemiro started in the opening Premier League game of the season against Arsenal on Sunday.

United had asked Brighton about the possibility of signing Baleba, but have been put off by their £120m asking price. The 21-year-old Cameroon international is under contract with Brighton until June 2028 and Moises Caicedo’s £115m price tag in a sale to Chelsea two years ago has set a precedent on the south coast.

Amorim hasn’t completely given up on signing a No.6 though, with The Athletic naming Morten Hjulmand and Adam Wharton as alternatives that are being considered. Having already spent over £200m, United have to think about whether making another major signing is viable with profit and sustainability rules to consider.

Hjulmand is extremely well known to Amorim, who worked with the Sporting Lisbon captain during his time with the club. The 26-year-old is reportedly available for around £50m, two years after signing from Lecce for just £15m. He played 65 times under Amorim’s management at Sporting, winning two Primeira Liga titles and the Taca de Portugal.

Wharton has caught the eye for Crystal Palace, but the club will be reluctant to sell, given Marc Guehi and Eberechi Eze are already in talks to join Liverpool and Tottenham respectively. The 21-year-old has four years left on his contract with Palace and has admirers at other Premier League clubs.

United have Casemiro, Manuel Ugarte and Kobbie Mainoo as options in holding midfield and, speaking ahead of the Arsenal game, Amorim insisted he didn’t need new players. “I'm really happy with our players,” he said when asked if they would sign a midfielder.

"They are working really well, we have different players for that position, so we are prepared to win any game with our players. Maybe Mason Mount is a player that I think can play in that position if we want something different. But then we are going to find out [during] the season. We have players to cope to win games in the Premier League."

Meanwhile, Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler is very confident Baleba is staying, He said: "He seems to be in a really good place, he's enjoying it with his team-mates, he's enjoying being a Brighton player. I didn't see any big changes and he's an option to start tomorrow. Very very very confident [he will stay], that's just my belief."