Manchester United have completed the signing of Carlos Baleba and are reportedly targeting a second Brighton player, Ferdi Kadioglu. The club announced Baleba's arrival on Tuesday afternoon, making the midfielder their fourth summer signing, and attention has now turned to securing a new left-back, with Kadioglu emerging as a target.
Kadioglu deal reportedly in the works
The Turkey international may not make an immediate impact if he joins, having missed the win over Aston Villa on Sunday with a minor injury after playing 87 minutes a few days earlier. Reports in his homeland claimed United were preparing to sign him from Brighton for £40m, and it has since been suggested via Sussex World that discussions have commenced over a £50m transfer.
AS Marca in Turkey also reported that United have targeted Kadioglu and noted that 10 per cent of any transfer sum is owed to his previous club Fenerbahce. The prospect of the deal materialising intensified when reports surfaced that left-back Jaouen Hadjam was poised to join Brighton from Swiss outfit Young Boys.
United squad updates
Clarification on the matter could emerge later this week when Fabian Hurzeler addresses the media ahead of the second leg against Tromso. Having secured Champions League qualification, United have a midweek break which will prove valuable following their loss to Hull City on Saturday.
The midfield pairing of Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans largely toiled, which may see Kobbie Mainoo restored to the starting XI. The attacking quartet is broadly anticipated to stay unchanged given Benjamin Sesko is unlikely to be match ready just yet and taking into account Amad's training injury.
Injury concerns for new signings
An ankle injury for Baleba means he is likely to be unavailable to make his United debut for a few weeks, with Kadioglu also contending with a problem of his own. The latter joined Brighton in August 2024 from Fenerbahce for £24m but injuries restricted him to just 887 minutes during his maiden campaign.
Throughout the 2025/26 season, however, the Turkish defender featured 42 times across all competitions and established himself as the club's preferred left-back.
