Man United face 2 more unexpected transfer exits after ‘huge news’, 8 could leave
Manchester United could see eight-first team players leave the club this summer amid “huge” new developments, after an update from David Ornstein has emerged.
Ruben Amorim‘s side suffered their 14th Premier League defeat of the season against Newcastle at St James’ Park on Sunday (13 April).
Man United went into the break with the scores level, however slumped to an all too familiar capitulation in the second-half when Harvey Barnes‘ brace took the game away from the visitors.
The talk prior to kick-off was the 40-year-old’s decision to leave Andre Onana out of the travelling squad, after his two mistakes midweek during Man United’s Europa League quarter-final versus Lyon.
However, after a new update from The Athletic’s Ornstein, he believes that despite it not being “on the agenda” for Man United, two unexpected departures could see as many as eight-first players leave this summer in order to fund other targets.
Andre Onana and Rasmus Højlund could leave Man United this summer
Speaking on NBC Sports on 13 April Ornstein was asked if Onana had been dropped for Man United’s trip to Newcastle, in which he replied: “He has been left out, he didn’t travel with the squad [Man United] to the North East of England.
“This was a decision made by Ruben Amorim, the Manchester United head coach, and it was accepted professionally by Onana. Amorim wanted to take him out of the firing line, his performances, his comments before the Lyon tie and the very distressing mugging suffered by his wife recently in the local area.
“This is something he [Onana] would have known about on Saturday before the stories broke. It’s unclear whether he will return for Thursday’s second-leg, which is so huge against Lyon or will it be Altay Bayındır, who we expect for him to come in for him today.
“It does raise questions about the future of Onana, he joined for £47.2million in the summer of 2023, signing a five-year contract with the option of a further 12 months. Unless somebody came in with huge money for him, the hopes of United selling him for a profit are almost non-existent.
“He has switched agents in recent months, meant for a new contract with improved terms, but he may now have to look at trying to shift his player and this would not have been expected for United, it was not on the agenda [signing a new goalkeeper].
Ornstein later touched on any other potential exits from the club this summer, adding: “That’s a similar situation with Rasmus Højlund, who many have said could be leaving with United looking to sign a new striker, it would not have been on the agenda as it would represent another PSR loss.
“United looking at the likes of Liam Delap at Ipswich Town, Benjamin Sesko at RB Leipzig, but those sort of signings will necessitate a lot of players leaving, we are taking the likes of Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Tyrell Malacia, Casemiro, Alejandro Garnacho maybe even Kobbie Mainoo. It’s going to be a very interesting summer of potential outgoings at Old Trafford to fund further incomings.”
A huge summer for Ruben Amorim and Man United
Football Insider Verdict
There’s no doubt that this summer will play a pivotal role in determining how successful Amorim’s time at Man United will be.
The squad is in desperate need of an overhaul, with the likes of Rashford, Sancho, Casemiro and now Onana and Højlund being linked with moves away.
While this is likely to provide funds for Amorim to bring in his own personnel, whether the club are actually able to use it directly towards transfers is another story.
| Højlund stats 24/25 |
| Games – 43 |
| Goals – 8 |
| Assists – 4 |
As of 2025, the club’s debt stands between £500million and £600m [BBC Sport], which encompasses both short-term and long-term obligations.
In addition, Man United has been incurring substantial annual losses, over £370m in the past five years, which prompted the recent cost-cutting measures including staff redundancies.
Couple this with the building of a new £2billion stadium and the financial situation does not look simple heading into the summer transfer window.
It remains to be seen whether Amorim will be backed to shape the squad for the years to come or if the many outgoings this summer will offset against Man United’s financial troubles.