Manchester United are confident of appointing former Liverpool transfer chief Michael Edwards, despite firm interest from Chelsea.
One of the first things United need to do in the coming years is fix the recruitment team, which was completely broken during Ed Woodward’s spell as executive vice chairman. It is too early to say whether John Murtough is what we needed all along, although United bought well during Erik ten Hag’s first summer in charge.
United had to work in tricky conditions because they couldn’t offer Champions League football to the best players in the world. For example, after chasing Frenkie de Jong for over 100 days, the Netherlands midfielder remained at Barcelona knowing his place in Xavi’s team was up in the air.
Reports suggest that United are looking to bring in Edwards, who had a terrific record during his recent spell at Liverpool. He was instrumental in signings such as Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane.
Football Insider claims United are optimistic that they can beat interest from Chelsea by hiring Edwards. The publication states that sources have told them that the board are ‘close to agreeing a deal’ with Edwards and are prepared to wait until next summer for him to start work.
It’s a decision that won’t go down well over on Merseyside, but it will be the biggest job of Edwards’ career. An offer he would be stupid to turn down.
This is not the first time Edwards has been linked with a switch to United.
