Manchester United finally moved closer to a fifth successive Premier League win after winning their third straight game against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday.
Brian Mbeumo scored two of the club’s four goals in the match, Casemiro scored and Matheus Cunha scored his first goal since joining from Wolves.
Interestingly, the Red Devils were up against a player who is reportedly looking to break the club’s transfer record, Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleva.
The Premier League giants were reportedly keen on signing the defensive midfielder in the summer transfer window, but INEOS decided against the big-money move.
However, Baleva failed to score a goal or provide an assist and was substituted in the 59th minute, while his direct opponent Casemiro recorded a goal and an assist.
The Brighton midfielder’s performance on Saturday, and his form throughout this season, may cause the club to reconsider the possibility of moving him in future transfer windows.
Why Manchester United won’t make a move to sign Carlos Baleva
The left-footed star’s decline in form between last season and this season is a cause for concern at Old Trafford, as it shows a lack of consistency in his play.
In the 2024/25 season, Baleva made 34 appearances for Brighton in the Premier League, winning 55% of his duels and making 3.7 tackles and interceptions per game, according to Sofascore.
The 21-year-old midfield talent scored three goals and provided one assist for the club, and his performances attracted interest from Manchester United in the summer.
Unfortunately, Baleva has not been able to maintain his form on the Premier League pitch this season as he was unable to move from Brighton during the transfer window.
Through the opening nine games of the 2025/26 season, the defensive numbers of United’s target defenders have declined across the board, which could be a red flag for the Red Devils’ recruitment department.
Carlos Baleva (Premier League) | 24/25 | 25/26 |
|---|---|---|
Appearance | 34 | 9 |
the goal | 3 | 0 |
Tackles + Interceptions per game | 3.7 | 2.1 |
Clearance per game | 1.3 | 0.9 |
Duels won per match | 5.8 | 3.1 |
Ground duel success rate | 55% | 41% |
Number of fouls committed per game | 1.2 | 1.4 |
Statistics by Sofascore | ||
As you can see from the table above, Baleva’s form has fallen off a cliff this season from a defensive standpoint, going from being dominant in duels to being dominated by opponents.
This could be why Ruben Amorim and INEOS are reluctant to make a club-record £89m-plus move for the Brighton player in January or next summer. That’s because his current performance level shows he’s not consistently great.
Man United preparing to sign La Liga midfielder
Manchester United are interested in signing Real Madrid defensive midfielder Eduardo Camavinga in the upcoming January deadline, according to a report in Spain by Stretty News.
According to the newspaper, the Red Devils are preparing to sign the France international next year to strengthen their options in the center of the park.
He added that the Premier League giants have made Camavinga their “highest priority” target and are willing to offer around £70m to secure his contract from the Spanish side.
However, the newspaper revealed that Real Madrid are in no hurry to sign the former Rennes star and it could cost more than £70 million to convince them to part ways with the midfielder.
It remains to be seen whether the Red Devils can do enough to convince Real Madrid to sell Camavinga, or if they can persuade him to move to Old Trafford given the lack of European football offers this season.
Why Manchester United should sign Eduardo Camavinga
Manchester United need to move forward with their move for a French central midfielder. Because he would be an upgrade to Baleva and an even better signing for Amorim’s midfield.
The left-footed star, who scored his first goal in the Champions League last month, provided a timely reminder of his quality in El Clasico at the weekend, winning eight of 12 matches and converting all three of his dribble attempts in the 2-1 win against Barcelona, according to SofaScore.
Camavinga, who has been used at left-back, centre-back, central midfield and defensive midfield for Real, has been more consistent and of higher quality than Valeva in all competitions over the past 365 days.
The graph above shows how the France international outperformed the Brighton star in key statistics in midfield last year, both in and out of possession.
On top of that, the £70m midfielder, described by analyst Raj Chauhan as a “dueling monster”, has outperformed Valeva at league level so far in the 2025/26 season.
25/26 season | Octane (Liga) | Baleva (Premier League) |
|---|---|---|
Appearance | 6 | 9 |
Sofa score evaluation | 6.96 | 6.53 |
Tackles made per game | 1.8 | 1.0 |
Number of dribble breakthroughs per game | 0.7x | 0.7x |
Duels won per match | 4.3 | 3.1 |
Ground duel success rate | 74% | 41% |
Number of fouls per game | 0.3 | 1.4 |
Statistics by Sofascore | ||
As you can see from the table above, the Real Madrid star has become more effective as a defensive presence in the center of the park at league level this season, winning 1.2 times more duels per match and winning a much higher percentage of ground duels.
Perhaps the most notable statistic is the number of respective fouls committed per game. While Camavinga rarely stumbles and has to foul an opponent, Baleva commits an average of more than one foul per match, which indicates that he loses duels and has to resort to fouls to stop play.
Overall, Camavinga appears to be the better option of the two, based on his form this season and over the past 365 days as a defensive midfielder signed by United in the January transfer window.
This is why INEOS should forget about Baleva’s transfer and focus on trying to sign the Real Madrid midfielder next year.
