Manchester United's Pursuit of Aurelien Tchouameni Continues Despite New Real Madrid Deal

Manchester United refuse to let the Aurelien Tchouameni dream die – even after the French midfielder tied himself to Real Madrid until 2031.

Michael Carrick’s rebuild has already taken shape in midfield. Andrey Santos has arrived from Chelsea. The club have activated the £45 million release clause in Youri Tielemans’ Aston Villa contract. Two new pieces on the board, both significant.

Yet United still want a third.

INEOS have long viewed Tchouameni as the ideal anchor for their new era, a statement signing at the base of midfield. Fabrizio Romano has repeatedly described the France international as a dream target for the club’s co-owners. On current evidence, they are dreaming about one of the best in the world in his position.

At 26, Tchouameni has already banked a LaLiga title and a Champions League crown with Real Madrid. He owns a UEFA Nations League medal from 2021, a World Cup runners-up medal from 2022, and he is now driving France’s push at the 2026 World Cup, where Les Bleus have powered their way into the semi-finals. He could end this summer as a world champion.

Ordinarily, a fresh contract at the Bernabeu until 2031 would slam the door shut. Last week, Romano and other leading reporters confirmed that agreement, and the wider reaction was simple: speculation over. Tchouameni stays. Manchester United move on.

Not quite.

According to Andy Mitten, that door might still be slightly ajar. Speaking on Talk of the Devils, the Manchester United specialist explained that his contacts in Madrid insist a sale remains possible. The message he received after the new deal was blunt: “They could still sell him.”

That line changes the temperature of the whole saga. The contract secures the player, rewards him, strengthens Madrid’s hand. It does not necessarily guarantee he will finish his prime years in Spain.

Mitten underlined two key points. First, United’s interest is real and longstanding. “Utd were interested in him, as you would be, because he’s very good,” he said, adding that Tchouameni is currently “perfectly happy in Madrid” but would also be “perfectly happy to play for Manchester United” if circumstances shifted.

Second, those circumstances may be dictated by Real Madrid’s own ambition. The Spanish giants, Mitten was told, “want to buy big, so they need to sell big.” That simple financial equation drags their elite core into focus.

Who brings in the kind of fee that funds another galáctico? Fede Valverde, now earmarked for the captaincy and, as Mitten joked, welcome at Old Trafford if he ever tires of the armband. Eduardo Camavinga, talented and versatile, but unlikely to command quite the same fee. Or Tchouameni, the defensive pillar whose value has soared with his club form and his performances for France.

The new contract, then, may be as much about protecting an asset as it is about building around him. From the outside, it flickered across social media like a full stop to the story – that’s it, Manchester United won’t be signing him. Mitten isn’t convinced the book is closed until the window slams shut.

He still calls the move “improbable.” It always has been. To prise one of Real Madrid’s best players away would require a huge offer and a clear decision in the Bernabeu boardroom that someone, somewhere, has to be sacrificed to fund the next wave.

Money, as Mitten put it, “dictates a lot of things in football.”

For now, Carrick works with Santos and Tielemans while United’s hierarchy keep one eye on Madrid and another on the clock. A dream signing remains just that – a dream – but as long as Real Madrid are plotting their next big buy, the question lingers: will Tchouameni become the star they cash in on, or the cornerstone they refuse to touch?