Manchester United‘s midfield reconstruction is nearing completion.

After signing Andrey Santos from Chelsea and Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa in the space of 24 hours of each other last month, there has been an element of ‘will-they, won’t-they’ about the past five weeks.

At times, it felt the ‘third midfielder’ search has taken on a life of its own.

Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni was heavily touted, so too Bournemouth‘s Alex Scott and Roma’s Manu Kone. In more recent days, the name of Fulham‘s Sander Berge has become more prominent. That of Bournemouth‘s Tyler Adams has never gone away.

United privately played down potential interest in Brighton‘s Carlos Baleba.

But in a sense, they didn’t need to be actively interested in him. Most of the work was done 12 months ago.

Now the first offer has gone in; £60m, plus an additional £5m. It won’t be enough.

Talks are continuing though and the expectation is the transfer will get done.

It is impossible to assess the merits of the actual transfers until the individuals concerned have played often enough to evaluate how well they have done.

However, it is fair to accept United’s data and recruitment department have succeeded in reshaping Michael Carrick’s midfield.

It was known in January veteran Brazilian Casemiro would leave when his contract expired on 30 June. Ruben Amorim’s exit had already seen skipper Bruno Fernandes move into a more advanced role.

With Manuel Ugarte not rated highly despite his £50.8m price tag, it meant United went into the summer with Kobbie Mainoo as the only experienced midfielder likely to play a prominent part in the 2026-27 season.

Mainoo’s strength is taking the ball in tight spaces and progressing it up the pitch. Santos has screened the defence excellently in pre-season. Tielemans has composure, an excellent passing range, and is determined to increase his goals output.

What the defeat by AC Milan in Wroclaw at the weekend highlighted was a lack of energy; a player in the old box-to-box mould. Baleba’s main strength is his ability to cover the ground quickly.

If the deal goes through, and when Baleba has recovered from an ankle injury sustained in pre-season that is expected to keep him out for another couple of weeks, Carrick will have variety and options, which also include Mason Mount, Scotland World Cup squad member Tyler Fletcher and, in extremis, Fernandes.

The Baleba situation also highlights a strategic change.

In the past, United have almost trailed the players they want to sign, then spent ages trying to complete a deal – or not.

Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong was a case in point in 2022. Erik ten Hag felt certain he could do the deal even though United’s recruitment staff were being told it was impossible.

It was well into August before the club admitted defeat; with defeats by Brighton and Brentford triggering the £70m deal for Casemiro.

This summer, there has been stealth behind their work. It suited them for talk around England’s Elliot Anderson to obscure what they were thinking around initial midfield targets as they knew the Nottingham Forest man would be financially beyond their reach.

The Santos deal was wrapped up within a week. The Tielemans one was less than that.

There has been consideration given to Mount being the ‘third midfielder’ because of his exceptional form in the early part of pre-season.

However, although his early exit in the encounter with Paris St-Germain in Gothenburg on 8 August was described as ‘precautionary’, Mount has still to return from the foot injury, which would only have heightened concerns around his injury record.

Baleba was supposedly off the radar as a third midfielder. Tchouameni, Scott, Kone, Berge and Adams were the ones being monitored. Now United have made their move, it would be a surprise if the transfer was not concluded swiftly.

Evidently, Old Trafford’s recruitment plans are now being controlled to a far tighter degree than was previously the case.

Of the four players they signed in 2025, striker Benjamin Sesko and goalkeeper Senne Lammens were the only two who were not bought from Premier League clubs.

The ease with which Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha settled into their new surroundings must have played a part in shaping thinking at Old Trafford this summer.

Cunha and Tielemans had release clauses. Mbeumo and Santos did not, neither does Baleba.

There is an argument buying from Premier League clubs costs more because they are all relatively rich. The premium, in theory, limits the risk of players failing to settle. It seems Manchester United feel the extra is worth paying.

“We want more, we need more,” Carrick stressed last week.

Baleba cannot be the end. It is accepted the need for a new left-back is acute.

No-one knows who it will be at this stage. But it is fair to assume there will be one.