With Joshua Zirkzee nearing a Serie A exit, Michael Carrick targets a loan deal for towering Atletico Madrid marksman Alexander Sorloth to bolster his depleted frontline.
Manchester United are set to take on Ipswich Town this weekend as they look to bounce back from the disappointing 2-0 loss to Hull City.
Michael Carrick faces a headache in terms of selection for the striker position. It is unclear how fit Benjamin Sesko is to start, meaning either Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo or Marcus Rashford would take the number nine position.
This comes after Joshua Zirkzee, the only other out-and-out striker, fell down the pecking order under Carrick and is now nearing a move away to Serie A, with talks with Fiorentina reportedly advanced.
If the Dutchman were to leave, that would certainly put the club back in the market for a forward.
Man Utd offered Sorloth
Throughout the summer, the club have been linked with several different strikers as back-up options, with an experienced option preferred. Danny Welbeck, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Dusan Vlahovic and Ivan Toney have all been mentioned, but deals for all are unlikely due to Welbeck and Vlahovic moving, Mateta being injured and Toney's wages.
This has opened the door for Manchester United to sign Alexander Sorloth. According to CaughtOffside, Atletico Madrid want £30 million for the striker, but United would prefer a loan move.
However, the club has yet to make a final decision on the player because Zirkzee has not officially moved to Fiorentina, and they want to wait to see whether any other market opportunities arise.
In his last Premier League stint with Crystal Palace from 2017-2019, the Norwegian failed to score a goal in the league. But he has gone on to excel in La Liga, with 72 goals in 171 games, including 33 goals for Atletico in the last two seasons.
Nearing panic mode
As is usually the case when sides are still searching for transfers until the end of the transfer deadline, Manchester United are scouring the market for available targets, ideally on a loan move.
This has been the case in many windows in recent years, from signing Wout Weghorst in January 2023, Sofyan Amrabat and Sergio Reguilón on loan in the Summer of 2023, to the emergency deadline-day loan of Odion Ighalo in January 2020.
Despite Sorloth's recent pedigree, he certainly comes under this category due to the club being unwilling to spend big this late in the window. He has obvious strengths, as at 6'5 he possesses the best traits to be an excellent target man in the Premier League.
While his previous failure in the Premier League and even the Bundesliga is a concern, he has been in a rich vein of form over the last few seasons, and on a loan move he could be a capable player to start up front. However, the obvious concerns are the lack of mobility and, as seen in the World Cup when Norway used him as a right winger, his lack of on-ball ability does mean the club may change playstyle when he comes on.
This same situation is arising at left-back, with the club being linked to several players, but the same issue of not wanting to spend big is beginning to make this look like a manic end to the window.
