Antoine Semenyo’s transfer saga remains short but not sweet for Manchester United as he’s likely to turn up against United for City in the Manchester Derby in January.
Despite Man Utd trying to convince the player, publicly through Ruben Amorim and privately by making enticing concessions, Antoine Semenyo has chosen Man City.
It could be a blessing in disguise for United, since they could re-route those funds towards a midfielder in January.
Fabrizio Romano has now taken the fans behind the scenes of this transfer saga, detailing Ruben Amorim’s role in pulling the plug on this chase.
Behind the scenes of Antoine Semenyo’s transfer decision
The Semenyo saga was short, but it was full of twists, as every conventional top-six club barring Arsenal registered their interest at one point or another.
Spurs were rejected first, then it became a Manchester Derby for his signature, before Isak’s injury brought Liverpool into the frame.
There was even a late inquiry from Chelsea but it went nowhere, as Semenyo ultimately decided between the blue and red halves of Manchester.
Romano, speaking on his YouTube channel, has detailed the ins and outs of this saga, which reflects well on United and Amorim.
He said: “Man City believe they won this crazy race. The reaction from Man Utd is, ‘We tried our best’. Man Utd made their best effort, be it tactical or financial.
“Utd made a very important financial offer to Semenyo. They pushed like crazy. They were even prepared to change the system to welcome Semenyo.
“But Ruben Amorim indicated that he only wants players who want to be at Manchester United, who want to wear the shirt, ‘We don’t want players who are not convinced’.
“Even last summer, with Viktor Gyokeres, get Champions League football, no Champions League football, United [said] okay, so game over [from Utd’s perspective].”
Ineos have lived up to their reputation
Semenyo’s talent is not under any doubt, but Romano’s insight into this saga reflects extremely well on Amorim and Ineos.
It can be argued that the previous regime would have given him a blank cheque to turn his head, like the case of Alexis Sanchez, for example.
That might have landed them the player, but his commitment would have already been in doubt, and so was his motivation.
Ineos’ hardline over going for only those players who have their heart set on United is a much-needed cultural reset that is more important than any one player.
Sometimes, you win the battle but lose the war. United are finally focused on winning the war, even if it means relinquishing these battles along the way.
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