Carlos Baleba’s price tag at Brighton & Hove Albion could see Manchester United finally secure their priority transfer when the January transfer window opens
Manchester United could land Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Carlos Baleba for less than £75million in 2026, six months after being priced out of a move for the Cameroon international.
United have held an interest in the 21-year-old for some time and made contact with the Seagulls, via intermediaries, over a possible summer switch. Brighton’s rigid stance and £105m price tag forced United to step away; instead, they spent £18.2m on goalkeeper Senne Lammens to replace Andre Onana.
Ruben Amorim is eager to sign a new midfielder when the January transfer window opens. Alongside Baleba, Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton is also at the top of their list after his impressive performances this season.
On Sunday, Baleba was substituted off in Brighton’s Premier League draw against West Ham, the 12th time in 13 starts that Fabian Hurzeler has opted to take the midfielder off. The German has publicly questioned Baleba’s performance levels, citing United’s interest in the player during the summer.
It has now been reported that Brighton’s stance on Baleba’s potential exit has changed since the summer. Sky Sports’ Sacha Tavolieri has reported that they could now consider offers worth €85m (£74.3m).
In even better news for United and Amorim, it’s believed that Baleba’s preference is to join United over Bayern Munich. The German champions are reportedly considering their own move for the Cameroonian amid uncertainty over Leon Goretzka’s future.
However, Tavolieri has claimed that some internally at Bayern are reluctant to pay such a high price for him. It keeps the door open for United to be in pole position to sign the midfielder, though it remains to be seen whether they will agree to pay that fee.
Back in September, Hurzeler admitted that he had concerns that Baleba’s struggles stemmed from United’s summer interest. “For sure, when a young boy reads there is interest from Manchester United with a big, big offer, it might affect him deep, deep down,” he said.
“That’s also part of the development to understand that when you play well, there comes a big offer, there comes a big club who wants to have him.
“But then to keep pushing, to be humble, stay here in Brighton, and try to make the next step with the team and that’s something we have to keep on working with him. I can’t give you a clear answer if it’s really affected him or not.
But for sure, he’s a young boy and we need to understand he’s not a machine that if you click on then he always runs and off then he stops. We need to understand his feelings, his emotions, where he comes from, and that’s our responsibility.”
Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle for the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games this season, an increase of up to 100 more.
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