Manchester United already played spoiler to Real Madrid on the transfer market this past summer, as they were willing to spend 60 million euros in order to sign Leny Yoro, whose Lille were not at all interested in the threat of losing the teenage center back for free in summer 2025.
So Juni Calafat’s dream transfer target at center back – and the best young player at the position – went to Man United, where he has yet to play due to a preseason injury.
But hopes are high for Yoro at Manchester United, especially with fellow summer center back signing Matthijs de Ligt not quite impressing. And it looks like the Red Devils aren’t done with trying to compete against Real Madrid for top players on the market.
Already, Manchester United are pushing increasingly hard for impending free agent left back Alphonso Davies of Bayern Munich, and they signed two of this starting teammates on the back line last season in De Ligt and right back Noussair Mazraoui.
Yoro was a defensive prospect, and now Man United are going after both a defender and a prospect linked to Real Madrid who are both highly prized by Calafat.
Because according to Argentinian outlet Radio Mitre Cordoba, Manchester United are after River Plate attacking midfielder Franco Mastantuono, who is one of the most highly prized young playmakers in world football.
Manchester United have reportedly held initial talks with the teenage sensation, and the player is interested in the Red Devils. River Plate would like to make a sale and then keep him on loan through the remainder of this season or even the 2025/26 campaign, too.
Mastantuono’s highlight reel caught Real’s eye this summer, and Calafat has been slowly chipping away at a deal, working with the player to potentially force River Plate’s hand into accepting a somewhat cheaper deal.
Basically, Real Madrid are hoping for Mastantuono to dream of their club so much that no other offer is competitive. They wanted the same approach with Yoro, but Lille stopped them in their tracks and Yoro apparently didn’t love Real all that much compared to another European heavyweight in Man United.
Perhaps the same situation will unfold for Manchester United here. Mastantuono reportedly has a 45 million euro release clause, so the 17-year-old would actually be an even better deal for Manchester United than Yoro – and attacking players tend to be more expensive, even if they are not proven at the European level.
Julian Alvarez made the leap from River Plate to Manchester City, the eventual champions of Europe that season, and Mastantuono is an even bigger prospect. So if Real Madrid are too stingy here, they could come to regret it with Manchester United, once again, benefiting greatly.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.