Manchester United hoping to win the race for the Malian Messi, Aboubacar Maiga | OneFootball

Not only the first-team but the Manchester United Academy is likely to see another major shake-up in the summer as INEOS stamp their authority over all facets of the club.

Plenty of young talents will end up leaving with The Peoples Person recently talking of Dan Gore’s future, while more signings are expected as well.

As seen from last summer, the new co-owners are fully focussed on improving the pipeline as seen from deals for Chido Obi and Ayden Heaven in January.

Christopher Vivell, the new head of recruitment, is calling all the shots with regards to signing the best young talents from across the globe as seen from the deal for Sekou Kone.

Academy intake

With chief of scouting Steve Brown set to depart, Vivell will now have an even greater say and as per TBR Football, he has another Malian wonderkid on his agenda.

Aboubacar Maiga, dubbed the Malian Messi, currently of Academie Africa Foot is of interest to the elites of Europe with Barcelona reportedly in pole position.

However, as United did with the Kone deal, they want to win the race for the 16-year-old who has earned enormous praise for his “technical brilliance, creativity, and vision in midfield”.

“TBR Football can exclusively reveal that a host of Premier League clubs are battling Barcelona to land one of Africa’s brightest young talents Aboubacar Maiga.

Malian Messi is hugely in demand

“The Spanish giants are hoping to utilise their partnership with Academie Africa Foot to snap up a talented teenager who is already drawing major attention across Europe.

“Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United are all showing active interest in signing Aboubacar Maiga.

“TBR Football also understands that beyond the Premier League and Barcelona, other major European outfits — including the Red Bull organisation — are keeping tabs on the teenager’s next move.”

Whether United can win the race for the Mali U16 captain remains to be seen but it is heartening to see the Red Devils take youth recruitment so seriously again.

Due to his age, Maiga might not join immediately but using the INEOS Football Group like Enzo Kana-Biyik, United could eventually land their chosen target.

Feature image Christopher Furlong via Getty Images

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