Man Utd interested in former Championship player after transfer listing and pre-season clash
Manchester United is one of two clubs interested in signing a former Championship star this summer, reports say.
So far this summer, United has mainly focused on strengthening their midfield. They’ve already signed Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa and Andrey Santos from Chelsea. Tielemans, 29, joined after United triggered a £35 million release clause during the World Cup, while Santos came from Chelsea for around £50 million.
They’ve also added goalkeeper Karl Darlow from Leeds to add depth, and young winger Tynan Thompson from Tottenham’s academy. Last month, United agreed a deal to sign Atalanta’s Ederson but later decided to go for Santos instead.
According to Italian paper Corriere di Bologna (via Sport Witness), United is now looking again to Serie A for their next signing. They reportedly want Bologna winger Jonathan Rowe, who might leave after Bologna missed out on European football this season.
Bologna finished eighth in Serie A under Vincenzo Italiano, who has now been replaced by Domenico Tedesco. Despite the change, it seems Rowe’s future lies away from Italy, just under a year after joining from Marseille.
Rowe originally signed for Marseille on loan from Norwich in summer 2024 before the deal was made permanent by then-manager Roberto De Zerbi. But he was soon put on the transfer list after a serious ‘bar fight’ with teammate Adrien Rabiot, which De Zerbi described as one of the worst he’d ever seen. Rowe was sold just five days later.
Earlier this month, during a pre-season friendly where Bologna was 3-0 down, Rowe was involved in another incident after a rough challenge, pushing an opponent to the ground and shoving another player, only stopped by teammates.
Despite these issues, clubs are still interested. Everton and Aston Villa are also reportedly keen on Rowe. Chelsea had made contact too but recently signed Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa for a British record fee of £117 million, so their interest might have cooled.