Manchester United to dump young winger in 'ruthless' move for superstar midfielder: report

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Manchester United could be about to move on a young star in a plan to bring in a big new presence in midfield

Erik ten Hag of Manchester United watches from the touchline during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Luton Town at Old Trafford on November 11, 2023 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Matthew Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images)
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Manchester United are about to get ruthless in their quest to sign a new midfielder, with a young winger expected to depart as a result.

The Red Devils are looking to undertake a squad overhaul in the coming months, with INEOS billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe at the helm of football operations. January business is expected, though not a certainty, as Erik ten Hag looks to take his team further up the table.

And with defensive midfield is looking a little weak in depth at the moment, Manchester United could well let one of their young stars leave to make a deal happen.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe waves before the Ligue 1 match between Monaco and Nice at the Stade Louis-II on April 20, 2022 in Fontvieille, Monaco.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe is heading up sweeping changes at Manchester United (Image credit: Valery Hache/AFP via Getty Images)

Portuguese publication A Bola claims that Sporting anchor Morten Hjulmand is being tracked for the defensive midfield position in United's system.

This comes mere months after Sofyan Amrabat was signed on loan by Ten Hag after the pair worked together in the Eredivisie. The Morrocan holding midfielder is only at Old Trafford on loan for the time being for an option to buy this summer.

The move for Hjulmand is one that may materialise over the summer, but the first steps could be made already, in the form of Facundo Pellistri's status as a United player. The Uruguayan, who joined from Penarol under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has struggled to break into the side since Ten Hag took over and may be used as a makeweight. 

Sporting's Danish midfielder #42 Morten Hjulmand (L) heads the ball with Famalicao's Spanish forward #11 Oscar Aranda during the Portuguese league football match between Sporting CP and FC Famalicao at Alvalade stadium in Lisbon on August 27, 2023.

Morten Hjulmand is wanted by Manchester United (Image credit: PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA/AFP via Getty Images)

The 22-year-old winger has made just 24 appearances for the Red Devils and has gone on two loan spells to Spanish side Alaves. TEAMtalk have labelled the transfer plan as "ruthless".

Hjulmand is valued at €26 million by Transfermarkt. 

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Mark White
Mark White
Content Editor

Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.