Manchester United are keeping Manu Koné under watch, but there is a clear problem here: pace. According to Corriere Dello Sport, Roma are still waiting for a formal approach for the French midfielder, and waiting is far from ideal when the deadline is getting closer.

Koné is currently on his post-tournament break after France’s semi-final exit and is not expected back until 10 August. By that time, Roma will already have returned from their training camp in Wales. In simple terms, his summer has turned into a holding pattern, part holiday and part uncertainty, with Manchester United interested but not yet making a commitment.

This matters because Roma want a sale completed by 31 July to meet the conditions of their UEFA settlement agreement. That deadline is shaping everything. If United genuinely want Koné, drifting through the market helps nobody. Roma need clarity, and they need it fast.

The contrast inside the squad is easy to see from the timings. Other players returning are already filtering back into Gian Piero Gasperini’s plans. Neil El Aynaoui, despite interest from several Premier League clubs, is still expected to report on 30 July and travel with the squad to Wales the following day. His situation is settled. Koné’s is not.

From a Manchester United point of view, this looks like familiar transfer behaviour: interest is there, groundwork is done, but urgency is missing. Clubs can monitor a player for months, but eventually they either make a bid or move on. At the moment, United have done neither.

Roma are also continuing work on outgoing deals elsewhere. Salah-Eddine is expected to remain behind from the Wales camp and train at Fulvio Bernardini while the club search for a buyer. That is straightforward squad management. Koné is a more important case because the money and the timing are much tighter.

As a Manchester United supporter, this report is the kind that makes you raise an eyebrow and then sigh. Koné sounds like a player United admire, and rightly so, because there is a lot to like about his profile. He has energy, aggression, and the ability to drive the ball through midfield. Those are qualities United have too often lacked when matches become scrappy and physical.

What is surprising is the lack of urgency. If the club have decided he is a target, then they should get on with it. Roma clearly have a financial reason to sell before the end of July, which usually means there is a deal to be done if you act decisively. United, though, too often behave like a club waiting for the market to sort itself out.

There is also a familiar risk here. Delay long enough and the price changes, another club joins the race, or the selling side simply changes its plan. Then supporters are left hearing that the player was appreciated internally, which is another way of saying nothing happened.

Koné may or may not be the perfect answer, but the worst approach is half-interest. Either he improves the midfield and you move now, or you stop hovering and focus on someone else. This slow-motion routine has already wasted enough windows.

Source: Corriere Dello Sport

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