Manchester United's Summer Transfer Dilemma: Midfield Solutions

Manchester United fans know this feeling too well.

Across town, Manchester City move with their usual cold efficiency. Down in north London, Tottenham have already picked off Bruno Fernandes and Sandro Tonali. At Old Trafford, though, the summer window has stalled before it has even started.

United are back in the Champions League after a surprise third-place finish, a return to Europe’s top table that should have triggered a statement window. Instead, as July drifts on, Michael Carrick is still waiting for his first confirmed signing.

Even Ederson, the £35 million midfielder from Atalanta, remains stuck in limbo while he finishes World Cup duty with Brazil. The deal is seen as a formality, but fans have heard that kind of language before. They’ve watched this club burn through money and momentum over the last decade. Prudence is welcome; paralysis is not.

The concern is simple: can this squad really fight on four fronts in 2026-27 with what Carrick currently has?

That question became sharper the moment Manuel Ugarte went down injured at the World Cup. A serious blow, and a brutal one for a coach who had already earmarked midfield as the area most in need of surgery. In a market where any half-decent ball-winner or playmaker attracts ridiculous fees, United now have to be both clever and decisive.

The options are there. None of them straightforward.

Bouaddi: The generational gamble

Ayyoub Bouaddi had already turned heads at Lille. Then came the World Cup opener against Brazil. At 18, he played like a veteran for Morocco – calm on the ball, sharp in the tackle, never flustered. One performance, and the world took notice.

United did too. A ball-playing, ball-winning midfielder who can dictate and destroy in equal measure is exactly what Carrick wants. The problem? Every major European club sees the same thing. Bouaddi has gone from promising teenager to “generational talent” tag almost overnight.

There’s also the question of balance. With Ederson already incoming, would United really drop another huge fee on a young midfielder who still has everything to prove in a top league? The temptation is obvious. So is the risk.

Berge: The low-cost lifeline

At the other end of the spectrum sits Sander Berge, the left-field, low-cost solution that refuses to go away.

For years, Berge looked destined for one of England’s elite. Instead, his path ran through Sheffield United, Burnley, and then Fulham in 2024. The big move never arrived. His reputation never quite matched the early hype.

Now he’s reminding everyone what he can do on the biggest stage. His World Cup form has reignited interest, and with United’s situation growing more urgent by the week, the 28-year-old has re-entered the conversation.

It’s not a glamorous move. It might be a smart one. Berge would give Carrick a different profile in midfield – physical presence, experience, and a calmer price tag. For a club that has so often overpaid for the idea of potential, there’s something appealing about that.

Baleba: Talent at an impossible price

Carlos Baleba is the one that got away last summer – and might have to stay that way.

Jason Wilcox pushed hard to bring the Cameroon international to Old Trafford, only to walk away when Brighton demanded £100m. United refused to bite then, expecting the price to soften. It hasn’t.

The strange part? Baleba’s 2025-26 campaign was hardly spectacular. Flashes of power and dynamism, yes, but not the kind of dominance that usually justifies a nine-figure fee. Brighton, though, are standing firm.

There’s no doubt Baleba would raise the athletic and technical level of United’s midfield. There’s also no way the club can sensibly justify paying that kind of money for a player who still feels more like a project than a finished article. United have been here before. They’re trying not to repeat the same mistake.

Alex Scott: Class with a question mark

Alex Scott is the sort of player who grows on you. Not a headline-grabber, but the kind of midfielder managers trust.

At Bournemouth, he quietly drove a historic season, helping the club secure a sixth-placed finish and a first-ever European qualification. Four goals, two assists, and a level of control from deep that had some pundits insisting he should have been on England’s World Cup plane to North America.

Liverpool have been circling since Andoni Iraola left the Vitality Stadium for Anfield. United are in the mix too. At 22, Scott fits the profile of a long-term solution: technically secure, tactically intelligent, still improving.

The sticking point is the fee. Bournemouth want at least £70m and insist they will only sell at the “right price”. That forces United into a hard call. Is Scott a £70m midfielder now, or a £70m bet on what he might become? The potential is obvious. The value, less so.

Andrey Santos: The attainable option

Then there is Andrey Santos, the name that surfaced over the weekend and split opinion among United’s online fanbase almost instantly.

Once tipped as a future Selecao star after breaking into the Vasco da Gama first team at 16, Santos has endured a stuttering start to his European career. He joined Chelsea in 2023, bounced around, and only really began to see serious minutes last season under Liam Rosenior.

He didn’t make Carlo Ancelotti’s World Cup squad, a worrying sign given Brazil’s lack of energy and drive in midfield. That omission has dented the aura around him.

Yet the talent hasn’t vanished. Enzo Maresca saw enough to believe Santos could thrive as a deep-lying midfielder, a role that would suit Carrick’s preference for building from the back. At 22, he still has time to grow into that responsibility.

Most importantly for United, he is available. Chelsea are open to selling. No drawn-out saga, no impossible valuation, no auction with half of Europe. In a summer where every top midfielder seems either wildly overpriced or completely out of reach, that matters.

Which is why, for all the glamour of Bouaddi and the intrigue of Scott and Baleba, Santos currently looks the most realistic arrival at Old Trafford.

United have been here before: at the crossroads between bold ambition and sensible squad-building, between the lure of the marquee name and the logic of the attainable fit. Carrick needs help now. The club cannot afford to admire the market for much longer.

The Champions League awaits. So does a season that will reveal whether this new era at Old Trafford is built on substance or just another set of promises.