Manchester United are looking to land top young talents under Ineos and the door may now be open for an exciting addition.
Manchester United’s season is over and one of the most fascinating summers in the club’s recent history is set to really kick off.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and co have already been making changes behind the scenes but now it’s time for big deals.
New signings will grab the headlines but Ineos must also weigh up whether to make a change in the dugout.
Erik ten Hag won the FA Cup but a disappointing season leaves the Manchester United boss unsure about his future at Old Trafford.
We could see a new manager and a raft of new signings to really start a new era at United, with a real change of approach expected.
Gone are the days of giving big contracts to players like Raphael Varane and Casemiro, who may have been past their best before even putting on the United shirt.
Manchester United given Assan Ouedraogo chance
Ineos are likely to focus on younger players with big potential with new technical director Jason Wilcox set to play a key role in the recruitment approach.
Top talents from around the world are already being linked with United and Bayern Munich may have just presented Ineos with a real chance.
Reports in May suggested that United were taking a close look at signing Schalke wonderkid Assan Ouedraogo.
It looked like Bayern Munich would win the race for Ouedraogo just days ago, but that situation has changed rapidly.
Claims from Germany suggested that Bayern had not given a firm commitment over a deal and they have now completely backed away.
Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg now claims that Bayern have decided not to go ahead with a deal for Ouedraogo.
It’s stated that Bayern don’t want to pay up for Ouedraogo right now and the German giants have now informed the midfielder’s entourage that a deal won’t be happening.
Plettenberg adds that the race for Ouedraogo’s signature is now ‘open again’ and a Premier League move is a real possibility.
Plettenberg claims that a £12million release clause must be activated for a Premier League move by the middle of June, giving United just about a fortnight to put a deal together.
‘Top teams’ in the Premier League are thought to be very keen on Ouedraogo and United appear to be one of them with Bayern now out of the picture.
Ouedraogo compared to Paul Pogba
Schalke teenager Ouedraogo has broken into the first team this season, bagging three goals and two assists in 17 first-team games.
The 18-year-old has a big future ahead of him and United could land a real talent with a deal this summer.
Ouedraogo is a tall, athletic and technically gifted midfielder with the ability to become a top box-to-box player.
That profile may sound somewhat similar to United fans with Paul Pogba a similar kind of player – and Ouedraogo has indeed been compared to Pogba.
United fans may have divided opinions on Pogba’s time at United and the way in which he arguably didn’t live up to his potential.
There will be high hopes around Ouedraogo though and United may believe that he can be the next real midfield star at Old Trafford having shown an interest in his signature.