With Ederson secured, Michael Carrick’s revolution shifts focus to Joshua Zirkzee’s future, Manuel Ugarte’s exit, and tactical reinforcements as the 2026 summer window ignites at Old Trafford.
Manchester United's transfer plans are now well underway for the 2026 summer transfer window. The club have already agreed a deal to sign Atalanta midfielder Ederson, who will do his medical in the next few weeks.
The club are also reportedly targeting other positions, such as on the left wing and at left-back in what will be a very interesting summer for Michael Carrick's club.
SullyTalkz held a transfer Q&A in Roundtable's community section, answering fans' questions about the club. Below is every word answered, including transfer targets, ins and outs, and what could happen in the summer!
Q: What is the state of play on our pursuit of strikers in the market? (Shel1990100)
Sully: We are monitoring the striker market and have been for the past few months. It is dependent on what happens with Joshua Zirkzee. Zirkzee has interest from a few clubs, and he nearly left in January, but the club didn't sanction it. The Dutch international wants consistent game time, so it is a situation to follow if clubs push for his signature.
Q: Have the club received any interests for any of its players? is there any progress there? like for ugarte? (Ace1604)
Sully: Yes, we have received interest from multiple players. Manuel Ugarte wants to leave, and United want to move him on. Ignore the reports that say we don't want to try to move him on. Several meetings were held in the past months, and all parties agreed it was best for Ugarte to move on. A few clubs, one in Turkey, enquired about Ugarte back in January, so it remains to be seen if they try to push for him again. I know of some early interest from Italy too, but it is all very premature at the moment, so let's see what happens in the coming weeks.
Q: Hi Sully, For those who have doubts over Ederson's ability - mainly on the ball quality and press resistance. How much do you think being coached by Carrick and having Bruno and Kobbie in the squad, will help improve his game? Thanks, Olly (OStringer)
Sully: Hey Olly. I don't believe it is for me to say whether people should doubt the signing or not. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but one thing which I won't stand for is writing him off before he has kicked a ball. People need to realise that the decision to sign him wasn't based on one man's opinion. I explained the process briefly in a reply on X, but there is such a long and detailed process before we pursue a signing where so many departments are involved. I can talk about this for hours, as this is so intriguing to me, but I need to answer more questions haha. The data and recruitment departments were aligned on the Ederson deal, and he was a player whom we had been following for years. He was on our list of midfielders last year too, but the fee was an issue. Michael Carrick has been involved in meetings where Ederson's name has been brought up, and I haven't heard anything to show that he opposes the signing whatsoever. The club will have a plan for him, and there is not a lot of concern about his abilities.
Q: How realistic of a signing is tchuameni? (Dcabsy)
Sully: I got destroyed for my update on Tchouameni the other week due to it being obvious info, haha, and fairly so, to be fair. Jose Mourinho coming in was always going to make the situation more difficult. It is difficult to give a concrete update due to the presidential election at Real Madrid at the moment and how things can change in the blink of an eye. Tchouameni is in the category A list, which is the top end of our list of midfielders. People need to remember that he hasn't been looked at recently. We liked him before he went to Real Madrid, and he is a player that every top European team would be looking at. United and Madrid have a great relationship, and we wouldn't want to damage it by pushing to sign him without their approval. Madrid wants to keep him as things stand, so that will need to change.
Q: Hi Sully. Appreciate for all your work. I want to ask you about Bruno. There’s lots of rumors about captain, I’m sure he’ll stay but will he? What’s his last dream for this club? (Andrew_OT)
Sully: My understanding is that Bruno Fernandes will stay beyond this summer. There is no immediate plans for him to leave despite long-term interest from Saudi Arabia. The club are planning the next season with him and the expectation is for him to stay. Fans must know this: Bruno loves and bleeds United. I can't put into words how loved he is internally. Going up to an U18 player and offering him advice, pulling a player to the side and asking if they are okay because they seem down and taking the time to speak to all staff members with respect: this is what you call a true captain and it is not even 5% of the man he is.
Q: How likely is it we sign Ndiaye from Everton this summer? I prefer him over Rodgers (Hassan9)
Sully: I did a post about Iliman Ndiaye a month back, and nothing has changed since. He is a player that is on our list of options, but we still haven't made a decision yet. From speaking to people close to Ndiaye, he sees United as a dream destination. Everton want to keep him, and they would demand a big fee.
Q: A lot of negativity recently towards the signing of Fernandes in terms of other clubs linked. But surely Man Utd are his preferred destination and he is likely to be a Utd player over other clubs? (Hassan9)
Sully: It is completely normal for other clubs to be linked to a player of his quality, and given how talented he is, I understand why a lot of the fanbase has been panicking due to the links in the past few days. You have to remember that Jorge Mendes is a very smart businessman, and there is a reason why he is the best at what he does. He will want the absolute best for himself and his client as would any agent. The reason why this is important is because of the reports coming out from West Ham's side regarding the widespread interest in Fernandes, which I believe to be overexaggerated. West Ham will try to generate as much money as possible for him. Do clubs like Napoli and Aston Villa like Fernandes? Of course they do; who wouldn't like him? But there is nothing that I have heard which suggests that they are serious contenders for his signature. From the people I've spoke to close to his camp, the feeling is he personally prefers a move to Manchester United. Why hasn't this come out publicly? Because they wouldn't want it to come out publicly. It's different with Mendes compared to some other agents, and this is because a lot of people believe he holds much more power when it comes to decision-making. It will put Mendes in a weak negotiating position, whereas when you have the card of multiple clubs being in for your client, you have an upper hand in negotiations. The reports of West Ham demanding £80M are true, but United wouldn't pay that, and neither would most clubs. It will be one to keep an eye on as the days pass, but it's important to not fall into believing a lot of the fake reports that are jumping the gun and guesswork. He is someone that Carrick admires and so does nearly every department at the club (data, scouting and recruitment). This is the current state of play (nothing breaking before people come at me), so I hope it clears it up a bit. A lot of cards are being played at the moment from all sides. For now, let the games begin.
Q: Hi Sully, appreciate what you do. Is Baleba still high on the list of targets? If so, have there been any discussions with Brighton? And is Baleba seen as Tier A (Anderson/Tchouameni) or Tier B (Mateus/etc) (Niko)
Sully: Carlos Baleba is one who has been linked with United for the past year now. I have to be careful with my words here, as I may be misquoted. What I can say as of now is that there is a gap in valuation between what United believe Baleba is worth and what Brighton value him as – whether this can change or will change remains to be seen, as it is so early in the summer. I think because of this, some interest has cooled as United don't want to overpay for a player who has struggled a lot this season. Despite his struggles, he is still rated very highly internally, and he has a lot of potential, but there hasn't really been any development in recent weeks. We made contact with his agents a few months back, and I know he would love to join United, probably over any other club, as things stand, but it has been very quiet on that front in recent weeks.
Q: Is there any chance for United to sign Elliot Anderson or he'd decided to join City after City proposed formal offer to Nottingham Forest and is there still a chance to sign Myles Lewis-Skelly after Arteta'd started him in UCL finals (CW10)
Sully: A lot of the Elliot Anderson situation has been publicised, so I would be regurgitating the same stuff, which I don't want to – top target, etc. The club's official stance remains that they will try for Anderson until the very end. A few people at United maintain the belief that he is leaning towards the blue side of Manchester as things stand.
Q: Hey Sully, thanks for all the work. I wonder if you know about how those who actually work on transfers feel about the mass hysteria over every miniscule detail being extrapolated into a crisis? Do the likes of Wilcox, Vivell, Hargreaves etc. just chuckle at the way many lose their minds over nothing or at times do you think it bothers them how uninformed and misled people's opinions are given we know next to nothing about why things happen/don't happen the way they do, the actual strategy underpinning our movements and the often unexpected circumstances which dictate who actually gets signed/sold (eg. partner preference, agent fees, allure of London etc). For what it's worth, I hope they don't give a damn about what all of us are saying. Public opinion blows like the wind and we have little grasp on the inner mechanics of deals. Thanks mate! (ConorOReilly)
Sully: Thank you for this question, Conor. I can tell you for a fact that the people in charge don't get overly bothered by a lot of the stick thrown at them. As a fan myself, I understand the concern and worries when there is a lack of updates in the mainstream media. We want this club back, and we have been starving of silverware for the past decade. A lot of people need to realise that nearly 90% of the work on transfers is done in the background with the media not knowing. The Ederson transfer was the perfect example of this case for me. For most of the saga, I would see people suggesting that the transfer was being agent-led with there being no real substance due to the lack of reports from the English media. I admire and have the most respect for nearly every journalist, but when some people were saying that we still hadn't given the green light on whether we wanted to pursue the Ederson deal, this just wasn't true. The inner mechanics of a deal are often never publicised, and they shouldn't be, but it is never a case of United just sitting there and doing nothing while other clubs are working. Even as I am writing this, United will continue working in the background, but fans wouldn't know what is going on. I am not claiming to know everything by any means as that would be ignorant of me, but I can tell you for a fact that they would have been planning for this window for months and months.
Q: Which of these Position will Man Utd more likely strengthen LHB or LHW? What will that mean for Dorgus Position in the team next year? (Busta)
Sully: The left-back area is one United have been looking at for a while now. It's only been in recent months where the search for one has intensified due to Tyrell Malacia's contract expiry. There have also been discussions internally that, despite Luke Shaw's brilliant season, Shaw will struggle to handle the intensity of the mass amount of games we will endure next season. While Patrick Dorgu has played on the left wing under Michael Carrick, my understanding is a lot of people at the club don't see the Denmark international's future there long-term. United have begun exploring options at left-back, and this is an area which the club are monitoring in the summer window. As things stand, I have been told that they are now locking in their target pool for the left-back position, which will consist of different profiles the club have scouted and assessed. One name that has been widely reported is Newcastle United's Lewis Hall. I can confirm he is high on the list and admired internally (as would most top clubs). The issue is on Newcastle United's end, and their current stance is that they want to keep him. The price would be massive, having spoken to people at Newcastle, and could even break the record for a price for a full-back in football history.
Q: Is rafa [Leao] to united a realistic one?Has there been any contact between AC Milan and Manchester United regarding a potential transfer? (kacpiezzzz)
Sully: My understanding is that Rafael Leao is a player that is being monitored by Manchester United, but that's all there is to it at this moment in time. There have been some brief contacts with his agents in the past, and obviously he's a player every top club rates. He has struggled a bit this season, and he has been playing out of position too. Leao would love to play in England and he has made that clear to the people around him, but as of now, Turkish clubs are pushing for him and have made contact with his agency in recent days and weeks. United still haven't made a decision on the left-wing position.
Q: What's the latest on Alex Scott? (bobprat)
Sully: Alex Scott is an interesting one. There have been multiple reports from credible journalists raising his name in the past few days and weeks, so there is some credibility in it when such incredible reporters are speaking upon it. I've been digging on Scott, and something interesting I was told was that he doesn't rank highly in the data profiling for midfielders we are looking at. My understanding is that United had briefly enquired about the England international back in January, and the numbers that we had heard were huge. What's now interesting is that he is in ongoing contract talks with AFC Bournemouth, and The Athletic reported that he isn't expected to sign a new deal. Scott has interest from multiple clubs, and one that has stood out more prominently in recent months is Tottenham Hotspur. It remains to be seen if they can persuade him to come or if they intensify their interest. United like Scott a lot, and he has impressed the scouts this season – it's important to note that Scott is a player we have scouted for several years. Bournemouth will ask for big money, as they aren't in any position to need to sell. I feel this story will become more clear in the next few weeks.
