Aurelien Tchouameni: Man United target’s final decision on Real Madrid future | OneFootball

Manchester United have missed out on yet another key target in midfield as Aurélien Tchouaméni is set to sign a new deal with Real Madrid, according to a reliable French journalist.

Dream Target for INEOS

While Elliot Anderson was the leading candidate to replace Casemiro this summer, INEOS were forced to pivot towards Matheus Fernandes after being priced out of the race by Manchester City. The fact that Nottingham Forest were able to extract £116 million out of the Citizens gave some validation to this decision, even if it remains a bitter blow given what a talent Anderson is.

However, it was déjà vu for United’s hierarchy when Tottenham Hotspur then repeated the same trick for Fernandes, hijacking a deal with a club-record £85 million offer to West Ham United.

This has left the Red Devils scrambling for alternatives, leading to a hastily agreed £50 million deal with Chelsea to sign Andrey Santos. The 22-year-old Brazilian is a long-term target, however, with inside sources at Old Trafford believing the price represents excellent value.

A £39 million agreement with Atalanta for their 26-year-old Brazil international, Ederson, was struck last month, with confirmation expected to come later this week after a medical. But throughout all these twists and turns in the drive to fix Michael Carrick’s stalling engine room, Tchouaméni has remained the “perfect signing” in United’s mind, as Fabrizio Romano reveals.

There is understood to have been quiet optimism that a bombshell deal could be struck for the France international, given Real Madrid are intent on adding more creativity and control to their midfield at the request of José Mourinho. To fund the pursuit of a high-profile target like Rodri or Enzo Fernández, an existing option would need to be sold – with Tchouaméni the most lucrative potential casualty by far.

United have held exploratory talks with the 26-year-old’s camp, believing he would be open to a switch to M16 if Madrid made it clear he had no future at the Santiago Bernabéu. This led to reports indicating a contract offer had been tabled, with a potentially record-breaking offer being prepared.

Another One Bites The Dust

This faint sense of hope has now been firmly extinguished, however, with RMC Sport reporter Fabrice Hawkins revealing Tchouaméni is “set to extend” his contract in the Spanish capital.

Translated Tweet: “Exclusive: Aurélien Tchouaméni is set to extend his contract with Real Madrid. Agreement reached between the Madrid club and the French international. @RMCsport.”

Romano has confirmed the update, stating the terms are “all agreed” on a new deal until 2031, with the existing one running until 2028. The idea that both Tchouaméni and Madrid were happy to continue their working relationship was well-known, particularly as the Frenchman is the type of enforcer Mourinho likes in midfield.

But it calls into question United’s ongoing interest, suggesting a naivety on INEOS’s part which is reminiscent of the Glazer family and Ed Woodward’s forlorn pursuits of superstars like Frenkie de Jong and Sergio Ramos.

Tchouaméni’s agent has almost certainly played a blinder by encouraging United’s interest in order to leverage a better deal for his client with Los Blancos. Sporting director Jason Wilcox and chief executive Omar Berrada were supposed to prevent this tactic, however, signalling an end to United being used as a contract negotiating gambit.

Having missed out on Anderson, Fernandes and Tchouaméni, United’s midfield rebuild is showing signs of crumbling. Ederson and Santos are good players available at reasonable prices, but they are not the type of game-changing signing needed to lift the Red Devils from pretenders to contenders.

Featured image Dan Mullan via Getty Images

online polls

The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social