After Sir Jim Ratcliffe spoke out about Manchester United going back to their roots and unearthing diamonds in the rough, it became pretty clear that the usual tactic of chasing big names would not be repeated this summer.
Manuel Ugarte, for instance, has only one year in a major European league under his belt and is nearly a decade younger than Casemiro was when the Brazilian arrived in a deal which left Ratcliffe baffled, per The Guardian.
Jarrad Branthwaite will only turn 22 on Thursday. And Joshua Zirkzee, 12 months his senior, is a welcome change from the flawed approach that saw a fleet of fading, 30-something centre-forwards arrive at Old Trafford under the Glazers.
Tijjani Noslin, meanwhile, feels like a Manchester United target of years gone by. When the Red Devils would frequently enter the market for promising if as yet relatively unproven talent and turn good players into great ones. See Antonio Valencia, Patrice Evra, Nemanja Vidic in the 2000s. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Denis Irwin and Dwight Yorke in the 1990s.
Manchester United enquire after Tijjani Noslin
One of the less well-known players linked with United this summer, Noslin was playing in the Eredivisie with Fortuna Sittard only a few months ago. He was a target for Millwall in 2023, per VI. Such is the impact he’s made in Italy, however, Noslin now looks destined to depart Hellas Verona after only half a season.
Goals against Atalanta, Fiorentina, Juventus, AC Milan and Scudetto winners Inter will do that for your reputation.
According to Tuttomercatoweb, Manchester United held talks with Hellas Verona on Tuesday. But Noslin has since turned down the chance to become the first signing of the Ineos era, preferring to stay in Italy for the time being.
Perhaps he feels that a third country and a third league in the space of only a few months would be a little too much to handle.
The chance to reunite with his former Hellas coach Marco Baroni was also likely a major factor.
Noslin is now expected to join Baroni’s new side Lazio instead, after all. The Biancocelesti could pay just £15 million – less than United were offering – but Hellas Verona will obtain 10 per cent of his future sale should the 24-year-old end up moving to, say, Old Trafford for a larger fee somewhere down the line.
“A nice player who is always dangerous,” is the assessment of Dutch icon Rafael van der Vaart, speaking to VI. “Very direct. He has it all.”
Another twist in Mason Greenwood saga
Man United’s wait for a breakthrough in the market goes on, then. Zirkzee’s £34 million release clause does not come into effect until next month. A deal for PSG midfielder Manuel Ugarte will take some negotiating.
United and Everton, meanwhile, remain poles apart in their valuation of Jarrad Branthwaite.
Another issue that arrises in missing out on Noslin, meanwhile, is that the sale of Mason Greenwood may just have become that little bit more complicated.
Noslin, after all, tends to play in the same right-wing spot that Greenwood made his own during those heady lockdown days under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. According to the ever-reliable Gianluca di Marzio, Lazio were planning a ‘blitz’ for Greenwood this week after Man United rejected their initial £20 million.
But, with Noslin now arriving, perhaps Lazio now feel they have found an alternative option for a fraction of the price.
