Manchester United has, in principle, struck a deal worth £25 million (€29 million) to transfer Scott McTominay to Napoli. The move is contingent on the midfielder’s consent. Given the Serie A club’s payment of the fees, which includes add-on charges, McTominay’s deal could potentially aid United in their quest to acquire Manuel Ugarte from Paris Saint-Germain. Erik ten Hag sees Ugarte as a valuable addition to bolster his options for the number 6 role, currently held solely by the senior player, Casemiro.
While Manchester United doesn’t need to part with any players to secure Ugarte, a national player from Uruguay, the management team prefers raising additional funds before proceeding. McTominay’s journey with United has been a long one, beginning from his early schooling days, until today where the 27-year-old boasts of having played 255 matches for the team, among which he netted the ball eight times. He achieved successes with United having won the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup. Currently, he holds the title of ‘International Player of the Year’ bestowed on him by the Scottish Football Writers’ Association.
In other news, Brendan Rodgers anticipates the completion of Matt O’Riley’s transfer from Celtic to Brighton over the next few days. The 23-year-old Danish player is presently in the south to complete his medical procedures for a transfer that could earn Celtic a reported £25 million; a significant upturn considering O’Riley was brought in from MK Dons in January 2022 for just £1.5m.
While making reference to the game against St Mirren at Paisley, Rodgers, the Hoops boss, intimated BBC Scotland with the progression of the move, as well as acknowledged the emotional toll of losing a top player like Matt. He commented on the club’s business acumen given the profitable deal and mentioned the expectation for Matt to thrive in the Premier League as Celtic carries on the pursuit of enhancing their club. Speculations are linking Celtic to Arne Engels, the 20-year-old midfielder from Augsburg.
Rodgers expressed his views on potentially signing new players, stating: “Ideally, I’d prefer not to cram so much activity into the final week, but we still have time to enhance our squad. It’s my hope that within the coming week, we can bring in reinforcements to bolster our squad depth, as we’re facing a lengthy season come post-September.”