Manchester United made no formal try to rival Chelsea for the signature of Sporting Lisbson sensation Geovany Quenda, who has agreed a deal to affix Premier League rivals Chelsea.
Chelsea have agreed a £41million deal to sign the 17-year-old star who will remain at Sporting on loan next season before making his move to Stamford Bridge in the summertime of 2026.
He’s the newest wonderkid to be snapped up by Chelsea who’ve set about hoovering up among the game’s top young talent with South American stars Estevao Willian and Kendry Paez set to affix this summer.
Quenda made his senior debut for Sporting under Ruben Amorim, thriving a right wing-back role in his favoured 3-4-3 formation.
After Amorim made the move to Manchester last November, it was been widely reported the United boss would seek to bring Quenda with him to Old Trafford through the summer transfer window.
Get personalised updates on Manchester United day-after-day
Get up to seek out news in your club in your inbox every morning with Metro’s Football Newsletter.
Enroll to our newsletter after which select your team within the link so we are able to send you football news tailored to you.
Quenda nevertheless is Chelsea-bound, with it now emerging United never submitted a suggestion for the Portuguese star.
Based on the Manchester Evening News, United met with agent Jorge Mendes last November, along with his Gestifute agency negotiating on behalf of Quenda and his agent.
Talks didn’t ‘extend beyond informal discussions’, in keeping with the report with United’s interest in Patrick Dorgu also playing an element.
Dorgu, a natural left-footer, was signed from Lecce for £25m in January, slotting into the left wing-back role.
While Quenda has predominantly played on the fitting for Sporting, he can be a natural left-footed player.
Sporting Lisbon manager Rui Borges meanwhile believes Quenda will probably be making a ‘natural’ next step when he joins Chelsea.
‘His growth has been rapid at Sporting, it’s natural that folks speak about him to big clubs,’ Borges said.
‘He’s a child who can have to learn to live with that. The deal that’s being talked about today, I can’t go into that until the club talks about it, because I don’t know.’
Asked about Quenda’s mind-set since being approached by Chelsea, he added: “I didn’t mention it specifically.
‘It’s something he has to learn to live with, he’s been growing quickly, sometimes we forget that he’s only 17.
‘It’s natural that they’ll speak about him, they’ll link him to many clubs, that will probably be a part of his growth. It is going to affect him mentally, but he has to learn to live with it.’
MORE: Ex-Man Utd star Brandon Williams had ‘balloon in his mouth’ before automobile crash at 99mph
MORE: Jose Mourinho tipped for surprise Premier League job: ‘You never know!’
MORE: Ezno Maresca confirms major change to Chelsea starting line-up for Arsenal clash
