Tiege Hanley: Get your first box 30% off (+ FREE gift), and 20% off for life, at tiege.com/stephenvs
Manchester United are in desperate need of a defensive midfielder. Mainoo has clearly shown us this season that he is more of an 8 and we now need someone who can sit behind him and do the ugly work. Here are 3 players I think United should be looking at to fill this hole in the squad...
🔔 Subscribe now for the freshest Football and Manchester United updates straight from Old Trafford. Here, you’ll be the first to catch:
🏟️ Football News: From the Premier League to the Champions League, we have all the hottest news covered.
🥅 Man Utd News: Get the latest scoops straight from Old Trafford.
🌟 Man United Academy News: Keeping tabs on the future stars of the club.
🎥 Live Stream Reactions: Join us as we share live reactions to all the Premier League and Champions League matches.
🎬 Manchester United Documentaries & Vlogs: Deep dives and behind-the-scenes insights into your favourite team.
⚽ Goals, Highlights & Player Analysis: Detailed analyses focusing on stars such as Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford.
🎧 Podcasts: Tune in for rich discussions featuring special guests and Erik ten Hag's press conference reactions.
📢 Transfers & Premier League Buzz: Be the first to know all the freshest transfers and Premier League news.
Your support is our strength! Contribute and enjoy exclusive perks:
💖 Patreon: Access behind-the-scenes and more here: bit.ly/HowsonPatreon
💎 KZhead Membership: Unlock exclusive perks: / @stephenhowson
Deepen the conversation:
Check out Howson IRL here: / @howson-irl
💬 Reddit: Engage with our community: / howson
🎤 Podcast: Tune into our in-depth discussions: apple.co/1qQHSdF
Stay Connected:
👍 Facebook: / mrstephenhowson
🐦 Twitter: / mrstephenhowson
📸 Instagram: / mrstephenhowson
🎵 TikTok: / mrstephenhowson
🌐 For more, visit: www.stephenhowson.com
#ManchesterUnited #MUFC
Tiege Hanley: Get your first box 30% off (+ FREE gift), and 20% off for life, at tiege.com/stephenvs
Remember when everyone thought Caiceido was the right fit?
Yeah, he and Enzo cost Chelsea over £100 M each yet Chelsea has struggled a lot this season. Their midfield has been almost non existent!
His "profile" was perfect. Remember we, Arsenal and Liverpool all needed a CDM. His profile was perfect, young, PL proven, played in a decent possession system, press resistant, decent passer, great in ground duels, tackles, interceptions. I mean if Liverpool were willing to pay 110M, then surely he is good because we know what Liverpool's transfer strategy is all about. It might be the case of him not being utilised properly at Chelsea and the insane 115M price tag doesn't help him. I am not sure but we had the opportunity to sign him for 5M back in 2019/20, but are board was ignorant.
This is different we would be paying less than 50m
@@user-ig1ps2mr2rhe is performing better in all stats than rice except for goals, it just cos he his in chealshit team
Surprised you didn’t mention Fofana’s ability to deal with a problem of united’s you have highlighted before which is his ability to track runners into the box and sniff out cut backs. With one year left it’s such good business to get this deal done
Personally think we need two, our lack of depth in midfield is why we get so many injuries/overran. Also think would place less pressure on mainoo as there is potential for a drop off if we rely on him too much at such a young age
The major reason for our incessant injuries I'll attribute to player poor personal life style, poor medical department and heavy training regime
@@orumwenseese4693 oh yeah 100% agree, combination of multiple reasons, 1. Lack of depth 2. Intensity of playing style - ie box to box runs in a counter style with fast attacking football - think ten hag has underestimated how fast the prem is 3. Attitude - like you say - players who care more about the wage than putting 100% into the pitch like look at Bruno, gives everything and has missed 1-2 games in his United career 4. Lack of possession - long time without the ball = long distances covered, leads to fatigue and result of fatigue means lack of oxygen to the working muscles, leads to lack of atp(energy) and oxygen to allow respiration = injury Keep the ball and it’s less frequent. 5. Frequency of games - basically a lack of recovery time I’m saying the obvious reasons here, there will be countless more
We have Daniel Gore returning from loan, we can use him in the friendly games and access his integration
Onana and Fofana, my take
Fofana..is the guy...onana got the stats but once you watch him,his first touch is horrible and cant play a through pass...stats can lie... AKA the Maguire pass stat.
well said. its between wieffer and fofana for me.
agreed. from what i've seen of Onana at everton his first touch, close control, turning with the ball and sharpness of pass is not top level
Yaa, I hope he and Branthwaite shouldn't be our priority signings. They are decent options but that would be lazy scouting from us to not look outside PL. Everton would obviously slap ridiculous fees for both of them given their financial condition. Imo, we should be looking at 5 players for 25-30M each instead of going for expensive signings and then get a loan or free signing here and there, because squad overhauling has to start NOW.
I'd take him along with Maxcence Caquaret(please forgivemyspelling) from Lyon
@@warrior2121 true...or merino of sociadad...
Fofana is the one imo, we desperately need a defensively sound but intelligent ball playing CDM not just a ‘leggy destroyer’. The silver lining in all the chaos with the club is the first Summer transfer window, finally having structure in place to bring the right players in and finally get rid of a lot of these players is genuinely really exciting. This will show us what Jim and the rest are really about.
INEOS know the French market very well, because of Nice obviously. We ridicule the French League but immense talent comes out from there. Look at Madrid signing Tchuoameni, Camavinga, Mendy. The entire 16/17 Monaco squad was sold like the 18/19 Ajax side. If Fofana is more technical and press resistant, we must go for him. Also, we must keep Kobbie in mind because his partner should compliment him, so we need like a hybrid no.6/no.8. Those who actually try and understand ETH keeping aside the banter and criticism, he loves rotations, so that dual 6/8 role would be ideal. Ruben Loftus Cheek would be an unpopular shout (3rd/4th option in the CM list) as we need that physicality uk.
Agreed, Sir Jim needs use the knowledge of the French market to our advantage and get quality players for a good price. That league produces high level players because the amount of kids from African and Caribbean heritage that want to be the next Henry, Zidane, Viera, Benzema, Kante, Desailly or Makelele means it’s a pressure cooker for talent.
Stephen, you should be working at United. With insight and knowledge like that you would be amazing on the recruitment team .
Like both Wieffer and Fofana. Would honestly try and get them both, Fofana is probably better suited box to box. Onana is too limited on the ball for me from what I've seen.
If we offloading Casemiro, VDB, Eriksen, Amrabat we would need 2 of them.
Given the prices quoted there I'd be thinking get two of them to replace Casemiro and Erisken. That's already a 10% upgrade on the squad let alone the first 11.
Every club outside of Manchester United, thanks you for another well done scout report. I say u start charging them a finders fee 😉😂
imagine if scouting would be all about checking some stats sites.
I think you have to think Fofana clicks the most boxes. Great partner for Mainoo.
I like the case presented for Fofana the most, especially as the modern game requires the top CDMs to be good at moving the ball forward as well as have top defensive capabilities.
We need an Anchor, that will protect the defence and reduce the crazy number of shots that our opponents are having. All three would be an upgrade, but Fofana is the Man Mountain that we desperately need! IMO
I work with several Everton supporters. Not one of them have anything good to say about Onana. More to the point, they think he's massively overrated. They talk about him in the same way I talk about Rashford.
What do they usually say about him?
He actually is mid
In my opinion, regarding all necessary positions, I'd say for the striker position, ivan toney or someone else experienced. In midfield, at cdm, youssou fofana. He's 25 and experienced. In defence, two cbs and one rb, todibo and anselmino at cb and geertruida from feyenoord at rb.
Wieffers is first choice for me. Then Fofana. I like Onana but i dont rate him as highly as the first two.
He is good but the banter around our club would go on that "We don't need another player from the Dutch league". But is he defensively sound!?, because we need a defensively and physically solid CDM as much as his technical prowess
@@user-ig1ps2mr2r I hear you on the banter from our fans but lets see what the new sporting structure do. He is solid and passes the stats and also the eye test but hey im not signing the players. Its going to be very interesting to see who the club goes for.
Fofana seems like the best choice. I think onana wouldn’t be good enough for the price Everton would want but for the right price would be a very good option
How much would Hjumland from Sporting cost?
Can't sign soneone with an arsenal tattoo
United need two players in midfield amadou onana and one other , the biggest question united need to ask is, if mainoo gets injured who is replacing him ,likewise Onana(if united get him). I pray this new owners and new potential manager actually think about the makeup of the team, and think about the drop off in quality if main players get injured not enough thought has been gone into ETH's squad . Same can be said for other positions .
I think we need 3 to be honest but maybe another youth player will cone through. I don't see United buying 2 let alone 3. All the noise is about buying a striker. Even in CB there is talk of buying only one.
@@sijiadegoke totally agree 100% problem is we dont know how much united will have as budget, not to mention who the manager will be
We need 3. The problem is that we have so much mismatch in profiles. Erisken is a 32 yr old who likes a slow passing game. Casemiro is a transitional player (not technical as Kroos and Modric did all that) whose best trait is a destroyer (which he can't do anymore!!) and then there is Scott who has suffered alot as a CM because he IS NOT A CM, a SS at best!! Amrabat was a last min loan signing whose primary trait is to keep it simple and he turned out to not be that technical and press resistant as we thought. Mount, who actually is a technically sound player has been injured. So, how can a manager implement one set style with such profiles!!?? I think if we want 3 new CMs, they have to be in that 25-35M category, they NEED TO BE TECHNICAL and physically capable and Casemiro has to go to Saudi, so that we get atleast 35-40M and most importantly, offload his huge wages.
All good options tbf Ste. I also think that Jayce Fitzgerald from the U18s is a good prospect for CDM, although it's probably a bit too soon for him obvs. He reads the game well, always seems to be in the right place at the right time, he's robust in the tackle and has a very good range of passing.
I feel like the best option is someone who could hold it down, if our best midfield options aren’t available and we have to fill in for Mainoo or Bruno for example - have seen this season how we have struggled with adaptive solutions in back up for key injured players and it has affected the way we have continue to implement a style of play, which we clearly saw on multiple occasions last season
If mount is fit he easily goes in as a 10.
Onana, Fofana, Wieffer, Hjulmand, Weigl, Martel, Locatelli, Pepelu, Kessie, Sangare, De Jong, Laimer… there’s plenty of good quality number 6’s (both defensive and playmakers) in football. I’ve only named a small few, the trick is finding a player that thinks quickly, makes good decisions, has a strong and driven personality who doesn’t let mistakes or bad moments affect him.
We must go for a young CDM like Wieffer or Hjulmand (he would prefer us because of Eriksen and Hojlund) and then go for a experienced player (not a veteran) like Locatelli. We can't buy 2 players each for more than even 50M this summer
Laimer was outstanding against Arsenal. Can't see Bayern selling anytime soon though unfortunately. He was a free transfer though so maybe a deal to be done.
@@user-ig1ps2mr2rHjulmand is an average player at best. Don't think he's IT
@@directorme6669 Yaa, I mean the 3 options in this video are definitely better. Hjulmand is an anchor. So, that would be a Casemiro replacement. The problem is we DON'T need a Casemiro replacement but instead need an alternative for De Jong (more defensive skillset than him and then it's ok not to be as technical).
Im only (possibly) taking fofana who sounds perfect. Onana got rinsed by Kobbie in the Belgium game - not technical enough, not press resistant enough. And Shurely weve been burned enough by the Dutch league not to go there for a while?
What about injury record/ missed games .... I wanna stay clear from injured players. We seem to bring in a lot of injured or injury prone players.
Jay mentioned a Howson Versus last week, and yet no upload, have you got one, or are you doing one that we can look forward too Ste?
said it before, ill say it again. i think Maguire could do a pretty good job as a CDM he's too slow for the backline but his aerial threat isn't matched by many - im sure that would deter long goal kicks from opposition to the wings plenty of players have changed positions in the middle of their careers, and if you straight up compare him with Casemiro - he's better at defending, bigger and stronger. United need to replace those out of contract position for position any more than that would be a huge shift in the squad - look at what has happened to Chelsea from bringing loads of new players in who don't know how each other plays. anyone that has ever played football will tell you it's easier to play with friends than it is with strangers - same thing
Onana would be such a good signing. Gives us some much needed legs and energy in midfield and adds some additional height to the team thats defintely needed
The drawback to Onana is his technical ability on the ball. We need a press resistant midfielder.
Also I will confuse him with Onana!
he's bang average. mediocre technical ability and also did you see him in that 6-0 defeat to chelsea
@@Tdivnie0 Onana will be a good squad player. Nowhere near a regular starting level if we want to compete. Him and Mats Wieffer would make a good signing.
@@Tdivnie0he’s more technical than people give him credit for. He’s not Rodri but he ain’t no slouch. His strength is defensive but his ability to carry the ball long distances and distribute is good enough to sure up the midfield. I think his primary job would be defensive, press resistance and quick and efficient distribution to the Mainoos. He’s proven to be able to do all of that. And even if you use the Rodri example, his first year was horrendous (in the standards of City, who still had the amazing Fernandinho) and grew into the role. You can give some room for growth too, and his current abilities are more than enough to make our midfield more controlling and difficult to run through.
I'd imagine that Ineos are well aware of Fofana with their Nice links and he looks a very solid option for us. If ETH stays then Wieffer will likely interest him, Onana too given his EPL experience. I haven't seen a lot of the first two, but I really like Fofana, either way all of them would be a big upgrade on this season's Casemiro.
I dont know why people think Onana will be a good sign, he wont please and he is not a DM
Too good to be true? Id love fir Ste to do a retrospective on recently suggested players and how their next move goes. It seems the MU scouts have not found anyone since SAF left. Even Bruno would have been a 5yr option under SAF not our last great hope Ste please set up a table of how the the last 10? Or so have gone during the windows and who if any we got instead
I like Onana and he appears to be a player with some good character and drive. Right age and size profile and covers a lot of ground. Just worried Everton would try to drag us for 70M fee. Could almost get the other two for his price alone. Sell or end Case Hannibal Eriksen Amrabat Donny to cover cost.
I like Onnana, but we might need to find a cheaper holding mid as we have many ares on the pitch to invest in.
We not only need CDM but we also need box to box midfielder, buying Onana alone Will cost you at least 50M the cheapest. But if we shop in ligue 1 with 50M we could get fofana+ Thuram for that price. Both of them are in the last year of his contract.
Personally I’d take any two out of Fonana, Ederson, Hjulmand, Onana. These are the type and quality we need right now, Onana is good but seems raw so development would be needed idm him but as long as he ain’t the only option.
If Casa leaves we will need 2 of those 3 easy, for me I would take Fofana and Wieffer, if we take Branthwaite from Everton we can't get Onana as well, i doubt they will sell both to us.
Hjumland is being closely monitored. United like Branthwaite but unlikely to sign two from same club in same window (Antony & Martinez was rare). Will Everton sell both Onana & Branthwaite to United?
All three of them will be highly sought after players this summer. Both Wieffer and Fofana have had suitors last year but declined a move, which is the mark of an intelligent player if you ask me. Putting a bid in early in the transfer window will be of key importance to signing any of them.
Fofana and wielfer, both cost around 70 million
Thank you for your insights
United need for a start 2 CBs - Todibo and Branthwaith 1 LB - Robinson or miguel Gutierrez or Ait Nuri 2 Midfielders - yusuf fofana, Amadou Onana or mats wielfer 1 Winger - Oliseh or nico Williams 1 Striker - Ivan toney
Branthwaith isn't all that I don't see what all the hype is about but he'll do for our British quota.
Branthwaite is way overhyped. Looks sloppy
Ederson from Atalanta! Progresses the ball well, tackles, intercepts & blocks.
Florentino Luis from Benfica as well
I’m still dreaming of an unrealistic summer of…Khephrem Thuram, Joao Neves, and Zubimendi. Plus a Todibo and selling several of our current players and basically all our midfielders 😅
Sign the first 2. Onana can do the 8 role and give mainoo the night off sometimes aa we don't want him to burn out. The first 2 plus kobbie works aa great options fighting for 2 positions. You could also play all 3 in the big games with Onana n mainoo as 2 8s
I'm not sure Onana is technical enough tbh. Maybe I'm just not seeing it, but doesn't look great on the ball
He is tall with a high centre of gravity. He will rarely look smooth on the ball
Fofona has the right price , mentality, hunger and skill sets to do the job,
Fofana for around 25-30m is an absolute bargain & one that we should seriously consider signing
I can already hear the chant “yes, we have two Onana’s”
With how bad our midfield is and how many injuries we've had this season we could probably do with buying all 3. Nobody wants to see McTominay or Eriksen playing there anymore when someone's injured or rested.
Ste have you done a scout video on Andre from fluminese
I think Hjulmand is the best option out of all three, and I've been an open advocate of Onana since his days in France.
Amadou Onana goes for me, He has almost everything we should be looking at... Press resistant most importantly, good in the air, strong and pacy, I think he can improve his range of passes with time.
Matts weiffer is a soldier
Surely we need 2 of them? We'll probably be getting rid of Amrabat and Casemiro and should be getting rid of McTominay and probably Erikson too. Having Bruno, Mainoo, Mount, Amad, Fofana, and Wieffer seems like it's leagues ahead of the current options for what we're trying to do. I know we also probably have 2 centre backs, a left back, and a striker as well that we need, but really think we need 2 midfielders who can play 6 in this squad
Love that Ste cant say 6 foot 1 without then saying 6 foot 1 is a great height for a footballer 😂😂😂
Someone who sees we are dire in CM. Thank you. Already fans are asking for yet a other forward. SMH I'd take Onana (anyone on thatist works to be honest)and a 6. Onana can play as an 8 when needed. Mainoo will need powerful players to play alongside so the 6 must be athletic. We should also consider playing 3 man MF instead of double pivot
We genuinely need any good player, literally any position
Two players I'd love to see at United next season are Fofana and Joey Veerman
Cheap alternative and 1 for the future we should snap up now is Equi Fernandez at Boca jr's and also go for Zubimendi
Ste, thoughts on Palhinha? He’d probably cost more, but I think he would be great. Out of those I’m leaning towards Mats Wieffer, then Onana
One of the best cdms in europe but he's like 29
The guy Ole wanted 3 yrs back available from 25 mil then only for Woodward to deny him?? Too late he is 28 now.
Super expensive and he will be 30 soon
Pepelu from Valencia is a midfielder that I would think is very good for Manchester United
Onana's been great for us this season, wouldn't mind another in Midfield
Fofana is like a Casemiro with legs. Onana is like a Goretzka type. Either would be excellen buys. But Wieffer is my favorite. Prime Nemanja Matic with more pace
If only we could go and buy 2 of these, ideally Foffana and Weiffer together, completesnthe midfield overhaul we have been skipping since losing Carrick, a Midfield of Foffana, Weiffer, Mainoo, Mount and Bruno in rotation giving young ones time to settle and Bruno some break he deserves. Sadly I don't see us getting 2 midfielders, but we should. Everton's Onana will ve overpriced, even if Everton is in bad ffp shape
I'd have loved to have seen us go after Nicolas Seiwald when he was at RB Salzburg, but since Leipzig have got him, he's barely played.
Hey ste what’s your opinion on Manu kone?
I love Onana, I think he's the perfect partner for Mainoo to grow with. Not the most technically lifted player on the world but not bad. Has good passing range, not Scholes or anything but skmethingnwe miss when we have to play Mainoo and McTominay as a pair. Ten Hag has experience with players like this (Alvarez at Ajax) and they have a role. I disagree with Mats Wiefer though. Feyenoord use him a lot like we use mctominay and he's never involved in the first phase of buildup. Defensively he is decent but he's so skinny I think he'll struggle in the prem. I would personally avoid. I haven't seen Fofana play at all so no comment lol but I hear he is good.
Content👌🏼
How about getting Pepelu from Valencia?
Amrabat seemed good and economical option before coming in. Lol
I love Mats Wieffer. He can solve Man United Midfield
Why dosnt someone from United recruitment department have a look at Stephen’s videos!
I think Fofana is the man. He can play multiple roles. Played against Arsenal last preseason and did really well.
The defensive midfielder is the weakest position in the current United Squad . I would actually buy two of the three players you have mentioned . Onanas size and power makes him a great squad player . I probably lean towards Fofana over Wieffer because of his speed because that is an area that we lack defensively . The bottom line is any of the three payers you have mentioned would make great additions to the current squad
This wind is only 45 mile an hour! 😂
Let Erikson, McT & Casemiro go - sign 2 of these
Ugarte isn’t getting minutes , Enrique favours Fabian ruiz, also Keita at Antwerp there fans rave about him
Utd need to buy 2 dm’s. One to play and one for cover or the option to play both. Otherwise you are just bringing on McTominay as a sub next season as the squad depth is shite.
Can you look at mandela keita underrated baller him and fofana would be good
My dad's and Everton fan so I've watched loads of Everton this season and Onana is nowhere near United quality. He's a Mctominay without the goal threat. He gets benched by Garner and Gueye loads too.
If Arne Slot becomes Liverpool's new manager, then he is likely to bring over Feyenoord's best players with him.
Would muokoko be a good back striker? Bvb manager clear doesn't rate him this season
I wouldn’t mind “Decoure” of Everton! Solid
Sign Fofana and Onana. Start next season with them, Mainoo and McTominay as the 4 main midfielders
What’s ur opinion on hjulmand
None of these would be steals mate all would cost 50m+
I swear I love mats wieffer he plays like rodri
Not watched onana mutch but when he played against England he was shocking
2 other premier league options Joao Gomes - Wolves Danilo - Forest Either could be available on the cheap as well. Especially Danilo if Forest drop.
Premier league players cost more. It's a typical united mistakes recently to over pay and not cover the areas of the squad due to running out of money. We need about 7-8 players so these guys from France and Holland if scouted properly make more sense.
Good job 👍
No Ste you can't just drive through the midfield, look at Scooby Doo! Man can't pass to save his life! We need a technical CDM
I would love Fofana. But i think i have Mostly seen him play as an 8
How about Kephram Thuram? This guys a powerhouse and already is owned by Jim. Seems a no brainer to me
Wieffer 100% for me, good at dropping into and behind the back line. Timber has done well in tandem with Wieffer for Feyenoord as well this season in the league.
The real deal is Exequiel Palacios but can we lure him without European football?
Mats Wieffer is not a classic 6 like Onana, hes more like mainoo, somwhere between a 6 and an 8.
Fofana and Weifer for me. Onana is good but still lacks something however, would look at him for 2026 season in any case.
As good as Onana is and would undoubtedly be the best fit for cdm position. I beleieve Jaoa neves is the midfielder we should be spending big on.He wouldnt work alongside mainoo due to lack of balance but if you get a cheap cdm such as weiffer or fofana or free transfer like rabiot who can also play there. Then that is a very strong midfield three which is extremely technical and can control games unlike our current mid which has no ball retention due to likes of casemiro, bruno, mct. Ideally though signing both Onana and Neves would be the ideal scenario.
Fofana is not a cdm he's a box to box he's literally a french mainoo, wieffer and onana are cdms not fofana
We need 2 new players in every position imo