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Manchester United have taken a surprising decision involving Kobbie Mainoo that has a negative effect on Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos and the third new midfield signing, who could be Manu Kone.

Man Utd have made it their priority to rebuild their midfield this summer. Casemiro left on a free transfer and has since been confirmed as a new Inter Miami player. If he had not suffered an ACL injury while playing for Uruguay at the World Cup, Manuel Ugarte would have been moved on.

Andrey Santos arrived from Chelsea in a deal worth £48m plus £2m in add-ons. Youri Tielemans further strengthened the group when Man Utd activated the £35m release clause in his contract at Aston Villa.

A third signing is still wanted and, according to Corriere dello Sport, that player could well be Manu Kone of Roma.

The Red Devils are reportedly already in principle agreement on personal terms with the 25-year-old France international.

Attention is now on whether Man Utd will open talks with Roma and then push them forward quickly. If that happens, the fee is expected to be in the £40m-£50m bracket.

However, Kone, along with Santos and Tielemans, may be a little surprised to learn that all three will be fighting for only one place in the starting eleven.

That is according to respected reporter Ben Jacobs, who, while speaking on The United Stand, said Man Utd have made Mainoo their main midfield figure going forward.

And with Bruno Fernandes having secured the No 10 role and Michael Carrick using only a two-man midfield, it means only one of Man Utd’s three new midfield signings will start matches when Mainoo is fit.

This development underlines Man Utd’s faith in Mainoo, who first broke through under Erik ten Hag.

The academy graduate had an outstanding first six months in the senior team, ending with a man of the match display in the 2024 FA Cup final.

Mainoo went on to win a place in England’s starting eleven at Euro 2024, although his situation worsened after Ruben Amorim took charge.

After barely getting any game time under the Portuguese coach, Mainoo asked for a loan move in the summer window of 2025 and had planned to request a departure again in the January window of 2026.

But Michael Carrick’s arrival immediately pushed Mainoo back into the starting eleven, and if Jacobs is right, that is where he will remain, regardless of who else United bring in.

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