Manchester United are still pushing to sign Carlos Baleba this summer as they search for a true powerhouse midfielder, with the Brighton and Hove Albion player remaining one of their top targets. The 22-year-old is again on the club’s radar after interest last summer and in January, and there is a desire at Old Trafford to try to get a deal done before the looming World Cup.
Sky Sports reported that United continue to view Baleba as a serious option, with personal terms said to have been broadly agreed last summer. That would not make the transfer straightforward. Brighton are understood to value him highly, and while a £100m asking price has previously been touted, it has also been claimed that INEOS are hoping to land him for something closer to £50m.
The numbers explain why United have not let the pursuit go. Baleba started just 22 Premier League games last season and averaged 54 minutes per game, while he was routinely hooked at the break in the early weeks of the campaign. Even so, his profile fits what United are chasing: last season he averaged one successful dribble per game and 3.7 tackles and interceptions per game, the kind of all-action output that has kept him among the club’s preferred options.
Baleba’s rise began before his move to England, after a spell at Lille, and his own influences point to the sort of midfielders he has long tried to emulate. He has said he watched Paul Pogba, Kevin De Bruyne and Thiago Alcântara closely, trying to copy what they did. One analyst has gone further, drawing a comparison with Pogba for his acceleration and power.
That comparison will carry extra weight at United. Pogba was one of the few true marquee midfield signings at Manchester in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, arriving from Juventus in 2016 for £89m before leaving in 2022 on a second free transfer exit. United have since been underwhelmed by several midfield arrivals, with Casemiro a notable exception, and there is a sense that this summer could bring as many as three additions in that area.
For United, Baleba is not just another target. He is a test of whether the club can finally land the sort of central midfielder that changes the scale of the team, and whether Brighton will move from valuing him as a premium asset to doing business at a figure United can live with.
