Manchester United's Midfield Rebuild Hits Snag with Kone Pursuit

Manchester United’s midfield rebuild under INEOS has hit its first snag, and it comes with a distinctly Parisian twist.

The club’s pursuit of Manu Kone, the France international who lit up the 2026 World Cup and impressed at AS Roma, has run into the shadow of Paris Saint-Germain. According to reports in Italy, the 25-year-old is holding out for a move to the French champions, even as United edge closer to Roma’s valuation.

United have already moved decisively in this window. Andrey Santos has arrived from Chelsea. Youri Tielemans has been picked off from Aston Villa. Michael Carrick wants three new midfielders to reshape the core of his side ahead of a season that brings the Champions League back into focus and demands a genuine tilt at the Premier League title.

Kone was supposed to be a major part of that plan.

Kone waits on PSG as United circle

TEAMtalk revealed on July 9 that United had turned their attention to Kone, with Roma setting a £50m asking price. Italian outlets have since gone further, claiming an agreement in principle over personal terms and suggesting United are readying a bid in the region of €50m (£42.6m, $57m).

Corriere dello Sport painted a picture of a deal there to be done. Talks ongoing. An agent, D’Amico, waiting for the decisive call from England. A fee “close to €50 million” being prepared. A significant number, but one Roma might yet test.

Atletico Madrid, Al-Ahli and Chelsea have all been linked, yet none of them currently define the story.

Paris Saint-Germain do.

Il Tempo reported on Friday that Kone is effectively on standby for PSG, waiting for a call that has not yet come. SportWitness and RomaPress have echoed that line: the midfielder is open to joining Manchester United, but his first hope is clear. He wants to see whether Luis Enrique’s side decide to move.

For now, they haven’t. No concrete offer. No formal approach. Just the possibility of a homecoming to the Ligue 1 and Champions League winners that is strong enough to make United wait.

Carrick and INEOS find themselves in a familiar modern scenario: the club with the money and the need, but not necessarily the player’s first choice.

Baleba: the other name on INEOS’ board

United, though, are not building this window around a single midfielder. Behind the Kone chase sits another long-term target: Carlos Baleba.

The Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder wanted Old Trafford last season. United wanted him too. The problem was the price. Brighton talked in numbers that made even a club of United’s scale step away.

Figures of more than £100m were floated for the 22-year-old Cameroon international. That killed the move. United walked.

The admiration never really faded. TEAMtalk’s transfer insider Graeme Bailey reported on July 21 that Carrick’s side still see Baleba as an ideal defensive presence at the base of midfield.

“What I am hearing is they want someone who can really help them defensively,” Bailey said. “In an ideal world they’d just sign Carlos Baleba. They absolutely love his game.

“Yes, he didn’t have his best season, but they still believe he’d be an outstanding fit for Manchester United.

“United believe Baleba is worth somewhere around the £50m mark, especially after what they considered an inconsistent campaign.

“Brighton couldn’t disagree more.

“Even before Elliot Anderson became the most expensive British player ever (now surpassed by Morgan Rogers), Brighton were talking about figures well north of £75m and closer to £100m.

“That immediately puts him outside United’s thinking.”

The valuation gap is enormous. United see a £50m player. Brighton see an asset closer to double that. It is the kind of stand-off that has become the Seagulls’ trademark in the market, and one that leaves United wary of wasting time.

Yet Baleba has not disappeared from the conversation. On July 23, Sky Sports confirmed that both Kone and Baleba are “being strongly considered” by United as they search for that third major midfield signing.

A defining decision in the middle of the pitch

So United sit here: two primary targets, two very different obstacles.

With Kone, the fee looks manageable, the club-to-club path relatively clear, but the player’s heart may be elsewhere if PSG finally pick up the phone. With Baleba, the desire is mutual, the fit obvious, but Brighton’s price threatens to shut the door before serious talks even begin.

For INEOS and Carrick, this is not just about ticking off another transfer. It is about choosing the player who will anchor a new era in midfield, someone to complement Santos and Tielemans and give United the defensive security they have lacked in too many big games.

The market has laid down its terms. The question now is whether United force the issue with Roma, test Brighton’s resolve again, or pivot to an entirely new name as the clock on the window keeps ticking.