Manchester United convinced at least one unwanted defender to leave the club. The Premier League side allowed center-back Eric Bailly to join Turkish club Besiktas on a free transfer despite the fact that he had one year left on his contract.
Bailly spent the 2022-23 campaign on loan with Ligue 1 side Marseille. When the French club rejected the opportunity to make the move permanent after the season ended, the 29-year-old returned to England and has been training with the reserve team since.
Bailly joined Manchester United in a £30 million transfer from La Liga side Villarreal in 2016. Injuries have limited him to only 113 games in six seasons with the club, although he managed to win UEFA Europa League and EFL Cup trophies.
Man United has been struggling to get rid of players that are not in manager Erik ten Hag’s plans, especially those playing at the back. Harry Maguire didn’t want to leave Old Trafford despite the club accepting a transfer offer from West Ham United for him, while veteran Jonny Evans doesn’t want to terminate his lucrative contract.
The club is reportedly keen to sanction several more departures despite the fact that the European transfer window has closed. Dutch midfielder Donny van de Beek received offers from Saudi Arabia and Turkey, and United hopes to encourage him to accept one of them.
