“I would rather allow him to join Bayern Munich than go to Manchester United, because that would be a downgrade to his career. No player in their right mind would accept United’s offer. Only God knows how many times we beat them last season,” Fulham coach says he would rather allow his £60m player to join Bayern than join Manchester United.

“It would be a step backward for his career for me to let him join Bayern Munich instead of Manchester United.” A player of any kind would not accept United’s offer. God only knows how many times we defeated them in the previous campaign. The Fulham coach believes he would rather his £60 million player to go for Bayern than for Manchester United.

Manchester United is being urged by Paul Ince to “hijack” Bayern Munich in the competition to recruit Joao Palhinha from Fulham, a Premier League rival.

Palhinha, a Portugal international from Sporting Lisbon, was one of the best acquisitions of the 2022 summer transfer window; Fulham paid about £20 million to acquire him.

Due to his impressive play, Bayern Munich made a move to sign the 28-year-old last summer. On the day of the deadline, this transaction fell through because Fulham could not find a suitable alternative.

The defensive midfielder enjoyed yet another successful season in 2023–2024 as Fulham narrowly averted Premier League relegation.

A top priority for the Red Devils during the summer transfer window will be to sign a new defensive midfielder, as Casemiro is anticipated to go due to interest from Saudi Pro League teams.

Man Utd has supposedly already “selected” their favourite to replace Casemiro, but Ince believes Palhinha would be “perfect” for the top-seeded team in the Premier League.

“There’s no doubt that Joao Palhinha could take Casemiro’s place next season,” Ince stated.

“It goes without saying that his summer transfer to Bayern Munich fell through on deadline day, but Fulham is reportedly ready to let him go now that Bayern is interested again.

However, based on the way he plays, I believe Manchester United would be a great fit for him. He is muscular, agile on the park, and capable of passing and tackling.

“He exudes a good sense of size. He has all the necessary skills to succeed at Manchester United, so hopefully they can steal a transfer.

Ince is cautious, though, pointing out that “players have to be aligned” and that Ten Hag may have trouble finding the ideal partner to “put alongside” Palhinha.

“The players you choose to play with him raise the only question. That’s always the hardest part, the former England captain continued, “because I think you have to play with good players to be a good player.”

“Every player needs to be in agreement with the season’s goal. That hasn’t, in my opinion, been Manchester United’s experience.

“But I believe Manchester United ought to be considering him as a kind of player.”