Manchester United have £185m evidence to increase Alejandro Garnacho transfer price tag
Alejandro Garnacho remains a Manchester United player for the foreseeable future after failing to secure a move away from Old Trafford in the January transfer window.
A bid was rebuffed by Napoli last month, and Chelsea expressed an interest, but the 20-year-old remained at the club and is now set to play a key part in the remainder of the 2024/25 season.
Any possibility of selling Garnacho was not met with any positivity from supporters. The fact that his sale would represent pure profit and would be a significant boost to the clubs' hopes of complying with Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) was not viewed as good enough to sell one of United's best players.
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United opted against spending money on a new striker in January, and it's understood they decided to prioritise their business in the summer. PSR isn't expected to be a problem that suddenly goes away, and interest in Garnacho is certain to resurface at the end of the season.
An offer that met United's valuation of Garnacho would have been considered but that never happened. The summer transfer window is different - clubs have more financial flexibility - and if Amorim fails to bring European football to Old Trafford for next season, they could be faced with months of speculation around their winger once again.
However, they should find themselves in a better position. Over the course of January, certain deals were completed that United should use as leverage to demand more for the Argentina international.
It was widely reported throughout the winter window that the Reds were holding firm on their £59million valuation of Garnacho, a bid of that much never came forward. Now, the club hierarchy has the opportunity to increase that demand.
Napoli registered an interest in Garnacho after allowing Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to leave for Paris Saint-Germain. Three years older than Garnacho, the Georgia international cost €60m (£49.9m) with an additional €10m (£8.3m) in add-ons - a total of £58.2m.
Manchester City reacted to their poor season by investing a similar fee for Omar Marmoush, 25, with add-ons taking that past the £60m mark. But it's Xavi Simons' move from PSG to RB Leipzig that should be the underlining one for United to refresh their stance on Garnacho.
Simons made his loan move to the Bundesliga permanent towards the end of the window for around £41.5m plus add-ons that could see it rise to €75m-€80m (£62.3m-£66.5m). Simons is 21 and could easily be worth more than £100m in two years time.
Those three deals total around £185.7m Garnacho is younger than all three and has more potential to grow into. He's also an academy product of United, which should count for something.
If United are forced to cash-in on Garnacho, they must use the transfers completed elsewhere as a blueprint to squeeze every last penny.