Following the announcement that Bayern Munich have signed Renato Sanches, Manchester United risk seeing their reported summer plans fall apart.
The German giants have undoubtedly pulled off a major coup coupled with confirmation that Mats Hummels will join them ahead of next season too, but their joy is in stark contrast to the great frustration in Manchester.
While the Red Devils had strongly been linked with the Portuguese starlet for some time, missing out on his signature predictably hasn’t gone down well with supporters.
However, as reported by The Sun, it could be about to get a whole lot worse as agent Jorge Mendes and Jose Mourinho were believed to be involved in United’s pursuit of the midfielder, and the fact that he has chosen not to join the Premier League giants could see Mourinho look elsewhere too.
The newspaper claims that the relationship between Mendes and executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has become strained, as it adds to previous reports that the United chief asked Mourinho to wait another 12 months to land the Old Trafford job.
Meanwhile, it’s another failure in the transfer market for United as supporters have seen several high-profile names now escape their grasp, and that in turn has led to significant criticism of Woodward’s pulling power.
Missing out on Sanches could now have even bigger ramifications, but it may work to Louis van Gaal’s advantage as he looks to see out the remainder of his contract much to the frustration of former players and supporters alike.
A top-four finish and a win in the FA Cup final later this month could sway opinion in the Dutchman’s favour, but it appears as though United won’t have much of an option anyway with Mourinho potentially in line to follow Sanches’s lead and consider other options.