Manchester United Target Alexander Sorloth as Striker Option

Erling Haaland’s close friend Alexander Sorloth could soon be sharing a city – if not a dressing room – with him, with intermediaries offering the Atletico Madrid striker to Manchester United in the final stretch of the window, sources have told TEAMtalk.

United’s recruitment team have been alerted to Sorloth as they scramble for another centre-forward option before Tuesday’s deadline, with the Norway international open to a move and ready to listen to Premier League offers. At 30, and with a brief spell at Crystal Palace already on his CV, the idea of returning to England appeals.

United hunt Sesko support, not just a body

Michael Carrick’s side need help up front. Joshua Zirkzee has gone to Fiorentina, leaving Benjamin Sesko as the clear first-choice No.9 and exposing how thin United are behind him.

Inside the club, the message is clear: if a striker comes in now, he has to be a genuine central option and a proper alternative to Sesko, not just a depth signing. Sorloth ticks those boxes.

Since joining Atletico, the Norwegian has impressed with his physicality, his work in the air and a penalty-box presence that has long made him a handful for defenders. Add in his previous Premier League experience and he starts to look like a pragmatic, ready-made solution for United’s bench and beyond.

Sorloth’s numbers underline that profile: 175 career goals in 475 appearances. Not elite, but proven.

Atletico are prepared to cash in, but only on their terms. The Spanish club will sanction a sale if – and only if – they land a replacement they trust.

Atletico juggle their own striker puzzle

The plan in Madrid is to keep Julian Alvarez, who arrived this summer and is seen as central to their attacking rebuild. Even so, they still want another striker through the door before letting Sorloth walk.

Gabriel Jesus of Arsenal is on their list. So is former Lille forward Jonathan David, who remains one of Europe’s most closely watched forwards. Both are being seriously considered as Atletico weigh up how to reshape Diego Simeone’s attack.

Juventus are also in the thick of this web. They are exploring a complex deal that would involve David, with Sorloth and Nico Gonzalez potentially moving as part of an exchange. Those talks, though, are proving messy and far from straightforward.

Amid all that, TEAMtalk can confirm David has also been offered to Manchester United. He is under assessment as another possible answer to their striking dilemma, a different stylistic option to Sorloth but one who would still relieve the burden on Sesko.

Mateta, Matanovic and a growing shortlist

Sorloth is not alone on United’s radar.

As previously reported, United have held conversations with Crystal Palace over Jean-Philippe Mateta and Ismaila Sarr, though neither deal looks easy to pull off. Financial demands and timing are both issues as the window ticks down.

United have also cast the net younger. Freiburg’s Igor Matanovic, Hoffenheim’s Fisnik Asllani and RB Leipzig’s Conrad Harder have all been discussed internally as longer-term projects rather than instant starters.

Even with that list, Sorloth has emerged as one of the more seasoned, plug-and-play options. His openness to a return to England strengthens his case and turns this into one of the more intriguing late-window stories to monitor.

There is another twist. Sorloth’s close relationship with Manchester City star Erling Haaland adds a touch of theatre to the prospect of him landing at Old Trafford. Two friends, two rivals, in the same city and on opposite sides of one of football’s fiercest divides.

For United, though, sentiment will not drive the decision. The priority is simple: find the right forward to complement Sesko. If that player is not available on their terms in the final days of the window, there is every chance they walk away and go without.