Manchester United’s pursuit of signing a new defender has hit a major snag. United have been linked with a move for Nice center-back Jean-Clair Todibo for some time now. The Frenchman was recently left off of his nation’s Euro 2024 squad by manager Didier Deschamps. Nevertheless, the 24-year-old star faced stiff competition at the position from William Saliba, Ibrahima Konate, and Dayot Upamecano.
Despite the setback, United has seemingly been chasing Todibo for months now. The potential transfer appeared even more likely to eventually happen after Sir Jim Ratcliffe joined the Red Devils as a minority owner. Although the billionaire only has a 25% stake in the English side, he has significant control at the club.
Along with the investment in United, Ratcliffe also previously purchased a majority stake in Nice as well. Owning pieces of both teams made many fans and pundits believe the Todibo deal was a foregone conclusion. After all, clubs that are owned by the same investors typically swap players fairly regularly. Nevertheless, official UEFA rules have now supposedly put the deal at serious risk.
Todibo transfer tangled as Nice, United play in same competition
According to , the governing body of the sport has essentially put the kibosh on the potential move. The transfer specialist claims that United has been in advanced discussions with Nice regarding Todibo for months. However, current UEFA rules apparently state that teams owned by the same group cannot make deals if they are competing in the same European competition.
Nice recently qualified for the Europa League after finishing fifth in Ligue 1. The Eaglets were previously in a Champions League place for much of the 2023/24 campaign. Nevertheless, they faltered quite a bit down the stretch to land in the secondary European competition. Nice only collected four wins in their final 15 French top-flight matches.
United, on the other hand, grabbed a spot in the Europa League after…
Source link : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/united-deal-for-elite-defender-blocked-by-uefa/
Author : Chris Moore
Publish date : 2024-06-19 18:55:48
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.