The sensational £37m transfer reunion that Man Utd must avoid this summer
The Red Devils have been linked with a shock swoop for a former player
There is a scene in Arrested Development during which Tobias Funke, renowned psychoanalyst turned failed actor, discusses the prospect of establishing an open marriage with his wife, Lindsay. ‘Well, does it work for those people?’, Lindsay asks, to which Tobias responds, ‘No. It never does. I mean these people somehow delude themselves into thinking it might... But it might work for us.’ Anyways, Manchester United are interested in signing Romelu Lukaku again.
The hefty striker is not having a good summer. After having been ousted from Euro 2024 on Monday afternoon along with the rest of an insipid Belgium squad, and having had no less than three goals ruled out in Germany following VAR interventions, the 31-year-old might be forgiven for thinking that he is somewhat cursed. As reports emerge linking him with a prospective return to Old Trafford, he might as well look into hiring an exorcist.
As per CalcioMercato, the situation is thus: United are in the market for a new centre forward to ease the burden on Rasmus Hojlund, and are understood to prefer a swoop for Bologna star Joshua Zirkzee. That deal could still happen, of course, but there are financial stumbling blocks to navigate - including a price tag of around £34 million, and a series of exorbitant demands from the Dutchman’s entourage.
To that end, United are also monitoring other alternatives - just in case - including, it would seem, Lukaku. Chelsea are expected to sell the forward over the coming weeks following his loan stint with AS Roma last season, and the understanding is that United are one of several clubs keeping half an eye on how proceedings develop at Stamford Bridge.
But here’s the thing; they should stop their gazing immediately. Firstly, Chelsea’s asking price is said to be around £37 million, which, for all you mathematicians out there, is definitely more than the £34 million they would likely be paying for Zirkzee. Then there are the optics. The arrival of Sir Jim Ratcliffe was supposed to herald the dawn of a new, forward-thinking era for the red half of Manchester, a recruitment renaissance that abandoned the ways of old and turned its back on overly-expensive grabs for slightly spent forces. Signing Lukaku would be a reversion to type, made all the more worse by the fact that his previous stint at Old Trafford ended so sourly.
By no means is the Belgian a bad footballer - bad footballers don’t score 85 times in 119 caps for their country or 121 times in 278 Premier League outings - but he is not the right man for United at this present moment in time. There are plenty of other strikers out there, and they would surely feel like much better fits for a club who are desperately keen to rebuild in the manner that the Red Devils are.
There is, of course, always the possibility that CalcioMercato are simply making things up as they go along, and if they are, all apologies to United and their new investors. But if there is even a grain of truth in the Italian outlet’s report, then this is one reunion that Ratcliffe and co. must avoid.