Manchester United Eye Alexander Sorloth as Transfer Deadline Approaches
Manchester United have been handed the chance to move for Alexander Sorloth as the clock ticks towards Tuesday’s transfer deadline.
Michael Carrick’s side have already made a major midfield splash with the £70million capture of Carlos Baleba from Brighton, but the focus at Old Trafford has quickly swung to the top and left of the pitch. United want a new centre-forward and a left-back in before the window slams shut, with the need for a striker sharpened by the looming exit of Joshua Zirkzee.
Zirkzee exit opens door up front
Zirkzee has given the green light to a return to Italy with Fiorentina, according to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio. The Serie A club have gone a step further, submitting a loan offer to United that includes an option to buy at the end of the season.
His departure would leave United light through the middle. Carrick needs a backup No 9 who can support and push Benjamin Sesko, rather than simply make up the numbers.
United have already sounded out Freiburg’s Igor Matanovic and Crystal Palace forward Jean-Philippe Mateta, who is keen to leave Selhurst Park. Both are on the list as potential replacements if Zirkzee heads for Florence.
Now a different profile of striker has been put on the table.
Sorloth offered to United
TEAMtalk report that intermediaries have ‘offered’ Alexander Sorloth to United, presenting the Atletico Madrid frontman as a ready-made solution.
At 6ft 5in, Sorloth brings the kind of physical presence United’s attack currently lacks. Across his senior career he has scored 175 goals in 475 appearances, numbers that underline his status as a specialist No 9 rather than a makeshift option.
Crucially for United, he fits the brief: a pure centre-forward who can compete with Sesko for the starting role and provide reliable cover across a long season.
The Norway international is understood to be open to leaving Atletico and would be willing to return to the Premier League. His first spell in England, with Crystal Palace between January 2018 and September 2020, never really caught fire. He played just 20 times for the Eagles, spending much of that period on loan at Gent and Trabzonspor.
A move to Old Trafford would offer him the chance to rewrite his Premier League story on a far bigger stage.
Atletico’s stance and striker dominoes
Atletico will allow Sorloth to go for the right price. His contract runs until June 2028, so the Spanish club are under no pressure to sell cheaply, and any deal will depend on them lining up a replacement first.
They are weighing moves for Arsenal forward Gabriel Jesus and Juventus striker Jonathan David as they plan their own reshuffle in attack.
The situation unfolds against a broader backdrop at Atletico, where Sorloth’s team-mate Julian Alvarez is being chased by both Barcelona and Arsenal. Atletico insist Alvarez is not for sale, but the player has publicly stated he wants a transfer, a stance that has angered sections of the club’s support and added more noise to an already tense window.
United weighing loan market late in window
Inside Old Trafford, there is an acceptance that late business up front is likely. Speaking on the Talk of the Devils podcast, Laurie Whitwell said: “Loan is what I have heard in terms of incoming,” underlining the financial and strategic reality United are working within.
Andy Mitten echoed that sense of growing expectation that something will happen before the deadline.
“Will we see new players come in? I think it’s increasing, I think it’s a possibility. I don’t know if the player would be signed or loaned. If you lose a striker, United look light up top.”
That is the calculation now facing United’s hierarchy. With Zirkzee edging towards the exit and time draining from the window, does Carrick push for a towering, battle-hardened No 9 in Sorloth to change the shape of his attack – or gamble that what he has is enough for the months ahead?
