Elliot Anderson, Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali are off the table - so where do Man Utd turn now? Ranking the Red Devils' midfield options after early transfer window blows

Ayyoub Bouaddi had already attracted plenty of attention with his performances for Lille before the World Cup began. However, the 18-year-old's staggeringly composed display for Morocco in the tournament-opener against Brazil made every single football fan across the globe sit up and take notice.

Given their need for a ball-playing, ball-winning midfielder, United were immediately linked with Bouaddi - but so too was every other top team in Europe. One also cannot help but wonder if the Red Devils would really be willing to spend big money on the Moroccan, having already signed Ederson, but there's no denying that Bouaddi looks like a generational talent.

The left-field, low-cost option. For many, many years, Sander Berge was tipped to join one of England's elite, but it never quite happened for the Norwegian, who made a name for himself at Sheffield United before spending one year at Burnley and then joining Fulham in 2024.

However, Berge is once again showcasing his quality at the World Cup, sparking speculation that an increasingly desperate United might turn to the 28-year-old to solve their midfield issues - and it's not the worst idea. Berge would undoubtedly offer United something different to what they already have - and for a reasonable fee.

Felix Nmecha's name has been bandied about a lot in the past few weeks, and it's easy to understand why. The former Manchester City academy product has become a regular at Borussia Dortmund over the past couple of seasons and forced his way into Germany's starting line-up.

He's physically strong, technically gifted and was one of his country's better players at the 2026 World Cup - although that's not saying much. Indeed, Nmecha had a shocker in Germany's surprising round-of-32 loss to Paraguay, so while he might be considered a decent low-cost option, there are legitimate doubts over the 25-year-old's true quality.

For all intents and purposes, Aurelien Tchouameni is United's No.1 target - and, up until a few months ago, the Frenchman looked very 'gettable' indeed. An already infamous dressing-room dust-up with Federico Valverde sparked reports that Tchouameni wanted to bring an end to his four-year stat at the Bernabeu - but Jose Mourinho's recent arrival appears to have changed everything.

The Portuguese is said to be a big fan of the 25-year-old, viewing him as the ideal man to anchor his midfield next season, meaning United's hopes of landing Tchouameni now appear minimal at best.

Carlos Baleba is a player that United director of football Jason Wilcox clearly believes capable of becoming one of the best midfielders in the Premier League. The Red Devils tried hard to sign the Cameroon international last summer but refused to meet Brighton's £100m asking price.

The crazy thing is that the Seagulls are reportedly refusing to lower their valuation, even though Baleba wasn't especially impressive during the 2025-26 campaign. So, while there's no doubt that the dynamic 22-year-old would add a lot to United's midfield, there's just no way they could justify paying such an extortionate fee for a player that still has so much to prove.

Alex Scott is a steadily-improving midfielder who played a pivotal role in Bournemouth qualifying for Europe for the first time ever via a sixth-placed finish in the Premier League. Some pundits actually argued that he was unlucky not to make the England squad for this summer's World Cup in North America, while there have been incessant links with Liverpool since Andoni Iraola left the Vitality Stadium for Anfield. 

However, United are also said to be very interested in the 22-year-old, who scored four goals and provided two assists from his deep-lying role last season. According to reports, Bournemouth are willing to sell Scott, but only at the 'right price - and the word is that they want at least £70m for the Guernsey native. United, thus, have a difficult decision to make, as it's debatable whether he's really worth that kind of money, even if his potential is obvious.

It emerged over the weekend that Andrey Santos is also on United's radar and it's fair to say that the reaction among the club's online followers was mixed at best. The Brazilian was touted as future Selecao star after breaking into the Vasco da Gama first team as a 16-year-old all the way back in 2021 but he didn't even make Carlo Ancelotti's World Cup squad, which is concerning, given the team's glaring lack of dynamism in midfield. It's also worth remembering that despite being on Chelsea's books since 2023, he only started to get some serious game time last season, under Liam Rosenior. It's, thus, difficult for United fans to get that excited about signing Santos.

However, there is definitely a good footballer in there - former Blues boss Enzo Maresca also felt the 22-year-old could flourish in a deep-lying midfield role - and he's probably the most obtainable target on our list, as Chelsea are very open to selling Santos. For that reason alone, he looks like the most likely midfielder to arrive at Old Trafford in the coming weeks.