Manchester United agreed a deal for Brighton's Carlos Baleba on Friday worth £65 million guaranteed with £5 million in add-ons, and the Cameroon international was due for his medical on Saturday, according to reporting by The Athletic. [1] He is twenty-two, arrived from Lille in 2023, has made 112 appearances for the club, and is currently working back from an ankle ligament injury. Brighton sold high again. They usually do.

The summer's exodus ledger reads like a harvest report: Jan Paul van Hecke to Tottenham for £52 million, Danny Welbeck to Chelsea, Diego Coppola to Paris FC for £17 million, Carl Rushworth to Coventry for £22.5 million. [2] The reinvestment gets less attention — Luka Vuskovic bought from Tottenham for £50 million, Zadok Yohanna from AIK for £21.5 million — because buying unproven players does not trend like selling developed ones. [2]

Critics call the model a strip mine. The accounting calls it asset rotation executed better than almost anyone in Europe manages, funded by supporters who accept that loving this club means watching favorites depart at peak value. United need him urgently: Casemiro departed on a free transfer, Manuel Ugarte injured his ligaments at the World Cup. [1] Baleba may not be fit for weeks. [1] Brighton kick off against Aston Villa on Sunday having already banked the fee. [1] One club sells certainty. The other buys hope at retail prices, plus add-ons.

-- PRIYA SHARMA, Delhi