Manchester United and Spurs have been linked with a transfer bid for the same midfielder - and United should make sure they win the race.
Sign up to our newsletter for the most distinctive football content delivered direct to your inbox
Sign up
Thank you for signing up!
Did you know with an ad-lite subscription to 3 Added Minutes, you get 70% fewer ads while viewing the news that matters to you.
Submitting...
While Manchester United have spent heavily on reinvigorating their attack this summer already, one major problem from last season remains entirely unaddressed – the midfield, which struggled with the demands of Ruben Amorim’s system last season.
Casemiro looks past his sell-by date, Manuel Ugarte has yet to live up to his billing and Kobbie Mainoo failed to maintain the form that saw him explode onto the scene in 2023/24, and all found it tough to effectively cover the kind of ground required by a two-man central pairing. If United are to get back on course, then a midfield refresh is surely a requirement.
So far, United have worried more about getting the goals that were notable by their absence under Amorim but a firm base of possession will surely become a priority before the transfer window closes – and rumours suggest that a former Premier League standout is now at the top of the shopping list. And if they do sign him, then they might just upset Tottenham Hotspur’s transfer plans in the process…
Will Manchester United hijack Spurs’ bid for João Palhinha?
The player in question is 30-year-old Bayern Munich midfielder João Palhinha, who moved from Fulham to Bavaria last summer for around £50m but has struggled to maintain his Premier League form in the Bundesliga.
United’s alleged interest in the Brazilian has been the subject of several stories in recent weeks, with The Independent the latest and perhaps most reputable outlet to mention the link. United aren’t alone in monitoring the midfielder, however.
Spurs, another side who need to inject some energy and bite into their midfield this summer, are also said to be interested in a move, while a few media sources suggest that Fulham could be interest in engineering a reunion with their standout player from the 2023/24 season as well.
Reports regarding the financial details of a potential move have been extremely varied. Some sources, such as GiveMeSport, suggest that an initial loan deal is most likely, while others claim that suitors could pay anything from £25m all the way up to £45m to arrange a permanent transfer.
Whether United want to borrow Palhinha or splash out to keep him for good remains to be seen, but the persistence of stories suggesting their interest means that he is likely to be high on their wishlist – and the same is true for Spurs. Perhaps if United could get a deal over the line, it would offer a small measure of revenge for their defeat in the Europa League final.
Still, if the fee ended up being anywhere near the £45m implied in some corners, there would be very little room for Palhinha to continue the subpar form he demonstrated at Bayern. He would have to get back to his best Fulham form very rapidly or risk looking like a serious waste of money. But the Fulham edition of Palhinha could be precisely what Manchester United need…
Why João Palhinha could be the right signing for Ruben Amorim
The difference between Palhinha’s performances at Craven Cottage and those at the Allianz Arena can largely be summed up by his tackling stats.
During the 2022/23 Premier League season, Palhinha attempted 135 tackles. In 2023/24, it went up to 152. In the Bundesliga last season, it was just 16. That’s partly because he barely started any matches and will also be influenced by the fact that he was playing for a team that dominated possession in their matches, but still – every 90 minutes, he put in around 40% of the total number of challenges that he had before.
There’s a debate as to whether that reflects the way Bayern tried to use him, further forward and more as a ball-carrier than as a ball-winner, or whether it’s a result of seemingly reduced energy and effort. Palhinha, who never seemed to stop at Fulham, seldom got going in Germany.
Therein lies the cause for concern for any potential buyer, but the upside is that when he was at his best – a best which came in the Premier League – Palhinha was not only destructive off the ball but dynamic on it and could cover huge swathes of grass effectively.
That’s precisely the sort of player that United desperately need. Casemiro’s legs were too old to cover the ground asked of him last season, and Mainoo’s technicality in tight corners makes him better suited to a more compact three-man midfield. If Amorim’s methods are to succeed, a player like Palhinha could be the answer, and if they can sign him on loan with no obligation to take him on full time if he can’t get back up to speed, then it seems like a low-risk, high-reward way to do business.
The same attributes that make him appeal to United, of course, provide the reasons for Spurs’ interest, and they too need to reinvigorate and reinforce their midfield if they’re going to make the most of their Champions League qualification or to get to form back in the league themselves.
Spurs are in such a similar situation to United in so many ways that finding a way to leapfrog them, even a minor one, may result in a satisfying and not insignificant advantage – but ultimately, however they get there, United need a midfielder that suits Amorim’s style of play. Without that, they will surely fall short of European qualification no matter how much they spend up front.