Final nail in the coffin of Maguire's United career: Todibo to arrive at Old Trafford with Barcelona's blessing

Manchester United are closing in on the signing of Nice centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo despite Harry Maguire's situation remaining unresolved. The Red Devils are hoping to bring in a new midfielder and a new centre-back before the transfer deadline as Erik Ten Hag looks to improve his squad.

A midfielder is considered the priority after Ten Hag's side put in two underwhelming performances against Wolves and Tottenham in their first two matches of the new Premier League season.

The deal is in danger: Maguire to decide if he prefers bigger salary of first-team football

There was a widespread consensus that United will only move for a new defender if Maguire – stripped of the captaincy – leaves Old Trafford.

Maguire's potential move to West Ham United has fallen through because the defender had been stalling with arranging his departure from Manchester. Even though the former captain is still sat on the bench, Ten Hag is allegedly in contact with OGC Nice over their defender, Todibo.

While the contacts between France and England are ongoing, Barcelona's directors are watching the situation with interest.

Describing Todibo's time at Camp Nou as low-profile would likely be an understatement. Following a mere ten appearances in Ligue 1 for Toulouse, the French player made a transition to Spain in January 2019 for a relatively modest fee. Despite being assigned the number 6 jersey, seemingly indicating substantial first-team participation, Todibo only managed five outings across all competitions. Subsequently, he was loaned out to Bundesliga outfit Schalke until the conclusion of the 2020/21 season.

Following his time at Schalke, Todibo embarked on loan spells with Benfica and later with Nice. Ultimately, Nice secured his permanent signing for a fee of approximately $9.2 million in 2021. Although his experience at Camp Nou might not have yielded the desired results, someone evidently recognized Todibo's untapped potential. This was evidenced by including a 20% sell-on clause when they sold him to Nice. Now, the Catalans could profit from it.

In fact, all parties would be happy if the former Barcelona defender arrived in Manchester. Everyone except Maguire.