Man Utd ‘talks shortly’ for Casemiro replacement after Pep Guardiola dumped him from Man City | OneFootball

Manchester United will open talks with the agents of former Manchester City midfielder Felix Nmecha shortly, according to a report, as the club’s co-owners, INEOS, ramp up their hunt for a replacement for Casemiro, but there is competition from Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea.

TEAMtalk’s transfer correspondent, Fraser Fletcher, reported on January 21, 2026, interest from Man Utd and Tottenham Hotspur in Nmecha. Sources told us at the time that Dortmund did not want to sell the former Man City midfielder in the January transfer window and would demand at least €60million (£52m, $70m) for him in the summer of 2026.

We understand that Man Utd and Tottenham are very keen on Nmecha, who failed to make his mark at Man City but has since starred for first VfL Wolfsburg and now Dortmund.

Man City decided not to hand Nmecha a new contract after manager Pep Guardiola did not deem him good enough after handing him three games for the first team.

Then just 20, Nmecha went on to play for Wolfsburg and joined Dortmund in 2023.

Casemiro has already announced that he will leave Man Utd at the end of the season, and the Red Devils have identified Nmecha as ‘a powerful midfielder to replace’ the former Real Madrid star, according to Fussball Daten.

The report has claimed that Man Utd view the former Man City academy graduate as ‘a strategic reinforcement in the centre’.

The German news outlet has backed our claim that Man Utd and Tottenham want Nmecha, adding that talks with clubs in England will start imminently.

The report added: ‘While no official offers have yet been made, his representatives are expected to begin talks in England shortly.

‘A transfer could increase his annual salary from around €5million to nearly €9million.’

Fussball Daten has claimed that Chelsea, too, want to sign Nmecha from Dortmund in the summer of 2026.

The London club’s scouts are reported to have watched Nmecha’s last five matches and ‘view him as a versatile building block for their long-term project’.

Chelsea’s interest in Nmecha comes as a surprise, given that the Germany international is 25 years of age and the Blues do not need another central midfielder.

When everyone is fit and available, Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior can call upon Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia, Dario Essugo, Enzo Fernandez and Andrey Santos to play in central midfield.

Nmecha has made 103 appearances for Dortmund so far in his career, scoring 13 goals and providing eight assists in the process.