Two Manchester United transfer choices revealed by merciless Nottingham Forest after baffling £90m decisions

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Manchester United’s decision to sell Anthony Elanga for £15m while rating Alejandro Garnacho at £70m illustrates the kind of errors that define their transfer missteps.  Manchester United are terrible at signings. That is no surprise. Their terrible history of post-Ferguson acquisitions is painfully familiar. However, they are arguably inferior in every facet of player sales, and insufficient emphasis is placed on how that disastrous failure has been more persistently harmful than subpar recruitment to their prospects for a significant rebuild.  They have never earned over £100m in a single season from player sales (four Premier League teams achieved this in just one season). They are the sole Premier League club whose highest sale happened prior to 2011. They still consider David Beckham's transfer to Real Madrid in 2003 as their fourth-biggest sale ever, and two players ahead of him – Angel Di Maria and Romelu Lukaku – were sold at a loss compared to their initial signing fe...

Barcelona proposed a deal for Joao Felix in January - but the La Liga giants turned it down.

• Barcelona provided an opportunity to acquire Joao Felix on loan in January. 

• During the 2023–2024 season, a Portuguese forward played for Barcelona.

• In the end, the 25-year-old chose AC Milan over Chelsea.

Barcelona is said to have declined the opportunity to acquire Joao Felix during the final phase of the January transfer window. 

Felix was released by Chelsea only a few months after finalizing a £45m permanent move back to Stamford Bridge, after an earlier loan in 2023. 

The Portugal international struggled to secure more than occasional minutes with Enzo Maresca and ultimately ended up joining AC Milan on loan to distance himself from the overcrowded Blues roster. 

However, it wasn't only Milan that received a proposal. La publicación deportiva española SPORT informa que al Barcelona se le ofreció la opción, aparentemente la elección inicial de Felix tras pasar la última temporada cedido con los catalanes. 

This prompted agent Jorge Mendes to reach out to sporting director Deco and president Joan Laporta, but the Barcelona officials rejected him. 

Barca sought a forward to enhance the squad, but reportedly, the goal was to find someone capable of playing as both a striker and a winger. This is the reason why Marcus Rashford was recognized as a target, although financial prudence eventually eliminated the chance of finalizing a deal. 

Reports suggest that Barca coach Hansi Flick would have welcomed Felix's arrival either last summer or in January, though it was never considered a priority by the club. 

There still exists the chance that Felix might eventually become a Barcelona player again in the future. His loan at Milan lasts only until the season concludes and lacks a pre-set purchase option, requiring any future agreement to be negotiated anew. 

Felix made his Serie A debut on Saturday, starting the team's victory over Empoli after beginning his Milan stint with a Coppa Italia goal off the bench against Roma last week.


 

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