Manchester United officials are reportedly torn between Sander Berge and Tyler Adams , who have emerged as two realistic options.
At the start of the summer, the club's supporters were anticipating the arrivals of prominent top-class profiles as the management plotted a midfield revamp.
Instead, INEOS have opted for cost-efficient moves, refusing to enter bidding wars. Therefore, their top targets, Elliot Anderson and Mateus Fernandes , ended up joining Man City and Spurs for £116 million and £85 million respectively.
After missing out on their primary targets, United bought Andrey Santos from Chelsea for £48 million and Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa for £35 million, before slamming the brakes on their midfield reboot.
United have been linked with prominent profiles like Aurelien Tchouameni and Manu Kone, but they haven't made noticeable progress on either track.
In his latest appearance on the Stretford Paddock podcast, trusted Man Utd insider Laurie Whitwell revealed that INEOS have effectively given up on Tchouameni, as they instead search the market for more affordable profiles, like Fulham 's Berge and Bournemouth 's Adams.
"They have obviously looked for Sander Berge, who is a different type of profile, isn't he?" said The Athletic journalist.
"There's more, like Tyler Adams at Bournemouth. They've looked to these players and I think they're currently assessing where to go with it. They're trying to have this internal debate."
Whitwell also ruled out a move for Tchouameni and Alex Scott , who are considered too pricey for United's current midfield budget.
Needless to say, this wasn't the debate United fans were hoping to have at this stage of the summer, as a large section of the supporters feel that neither player would make for an inspiring new signing.
But if we have to choose between the two, we must first assess their playing attributes and try to understand which profile would better complement Michael Carrick's current midfield options (Santos, Tielemans, and Kobbie Mainoo ).
Berge is a 28-year-old Norwegian international who has been a protagonist at Fulham since joining the club in 2024. Standing at 195 cm (6 ft 5 in), he makes for an imposing presence in the middle of the park, but he's also capable of carrying the ball forward, making him a reliable box-to-box midfielder.
(Stats via DataMB )
On the other hand, Adams operates in a slightly deeper role on the pitch. The USMNT stalwart's most important trait is his ability to shield the backline. Therefore, he can be considered a traditional holding midfielder.
Therefore, Carrick must decide whether he prefers to have another No.8 or a No.6 in the squad.
One could argue that the current department lacks a genuine box-to-box player, as Santos and Tielemans are both comfortable playing deep, although they have different attributes, while Mainoo is more of a playmaker than a ground-covering No.8, hence why Berge might just be a more useful profile.
