It is a mark of how far Manchester United’s stock has fallen in recent years that young players, and even young English players, have begun choosing clubs abroad rather than come to Old Trafford. Borussia Dortmund, in particular, have been one of the biggest beneficiaries of this, as the German club have picked up talented youngsters from all over the world, before refining and honing them and selling them on for huge profits. This model has served Dortmund well so far, and their latest transfer coup is another example of this strategy, with Dortmund buying Birmingham City’s 17-year-old midfield prodigy Jude Bellingham for £26 million, making him the most expensive 17-year-old in history. This is not the first example of a player having snubbed United to go to Dortmund, though.
Manchester United were heavily interested in Jadon Sancho when he announced that he would be leaving Manchester City. However, Sancho chose to go abroad due to the promise of more playing time, while Dortmund also offered a fee of £8million to City to sweeten the blow. More recently, Erling Haaland, the Norwegian goalscoring prodigy, was another target for the Red Devils, but he too chose to move to the Ruhr valley in search of more playing time rather than arrive in Manchester. If reports are to be believed, Haaland also preferred the setup at Dortmund, with the club seemingly having a more joined-up approach to recruitment and squad-building than United. That ought to sting for a club of United’s stature, but the truth is that the recruitment at the club has definitely been haphazard over the last few seasons, which can be a problem when you are trying to attract some of the best players in the world.
In fact, there was a time a few seasons ago where fans would have had more luck at online casinos, than United have had in the transfer market. The list of players who have used the club as a bargaining chip in order to bag new contracts at their existing clubs is a who’s-who of some of the best players in the world – Sergio Ramos, Thomas Muller, Gareth Bale, Toni Kroos, Thiago, Diego Godin and more have entertained the idea of coming to Old Trafford, but only to stay put or move to a different club.
However, United’s luck in the transfer market may be turning, and so fans should probably not be turning to even the best online casino in the upcoming window, as the Red Devils’ transfer dealings will probably be more entertaining. The club are in for Sancho again this summer, with the 20-year-old winger looking to move on from Dortmund, while they are also looking to recruit Jack Grealish from Aston Villa, which will become much easier if the Midlands club end up being relegated from the Premier League. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is also apparently in the market for a centre-back, and United will look to bring in someone with the quality to slot into the first-team straight away. That explains the biggest reason for these starlets not choosing Old Trafford – there would be too much pressure on them to succeed immediately, while they would also not be guaranteed a spot in the lineup given the amount of talent at the club already.
