River Plate's star midfielder Franco Mastantuono has attracted attention from all over Europe and Manchester United have been told they will miss out on his transfer to Real Madrid
Manchester United look set to miss out on Argentina wonderkid Franco Mastantuono because he favours a move to Real Madrid. United are preparing for a busy summer transfer window, when they want to overhaul Ruben Amorim’s squad following a miserable season, but know it won’t be easy.
United are 14th in the Premier League and their chances of qualifying for next season’s Champions League rely solely on winning the Europa League. They have the first leg of their semi-final against Athletic Bilbao on Thursday night and know the tie will be crucial to their chances of attracting top players this summer.
Amorim is ready to rip apart his current crop of players in order to fund new arrivals and has made Wolves forward Matheus Cunha his top target. But there are plenty of other positions that need strengthening, including midfield.
Mastantuono has scored seven goals and provided five assists in 55 appearances for River Plate and has attracted a lot of attention. The 17-year-old is the club's youngest goalscorer, having netted at just 16 years, five months, and 25 days in February 2024, and has already played for Argentina's under-21s.
He is poised to follow in the footsteps of River graduates Chelsea star Enzo Fernandez and Atletico Madrid’s Julian Alvarez by moving to Europe this summer. But it appears unlikely that United will get their man, with TyC Sports reporting that Mastantuono has told the club he wants to wait for Real Madrid.
United, Chelsea, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Marseille and Inter Milan are all interested in acquiring his services. Even if they get there before Real, clubs would have to pay his £38million release clause.
It seems as though Mastantuono wants to follow the path trodden by Brazilian stars Endrick, Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior, who all joined Real after impressing in their home country. The left-footed attacking midfielder appears to have the world at his feet and United’s recent struggles are an obvious issue.
They remain active nevertheless and are reportedly about to strike a deal to sign Enzo Kana-Biyik on a free transfer from Le Havre. The 18-year-old forward has travelled to Manchester to sign a deal which will see him go out on loan to FC Lausanne-Sport, a club owned by INEOS, next season.
Amorim knows the summer will be “crucial” to his plans going forward at United. "I think it's crucial," he said last month. "I think we are trying to do everything as soon as possible. If you look at the schedule of teams we will not have the Club World Cup, so that means that we are going to have a pre-season
"If you look at the next years, we are going to have a World Cup then a European Championship. So this window is going to be massive to work on our base. I think it's clear for everybody here that is going to be crucial and we have to take advantage of that.”