Branthwaite was the no.1 defensive target for the Red Devils this summer and they managed to agree personal terms with him in advance.

However, a deal did not materialise in the end. Berrada was willing to pay between £50-60m for the centre-back, but the Toffees wanted £75m.

The Merseyside outfit cited that Manchester City paid a similar fee for Josko Gvardiol , who made the switch from RB Leipzig last year.

Berrada did not believe Branthwaite was worth the package. The United CEO cited his lack of relative experience compared to the Croatian ace.

Gvardiol had already starred in the Champions League as well as in the World Cup for Croatia. Branthwaite had no such achievements in his CV.

Hence, United preferred to move on to alternative targets. They ended up recruiting Leny Yoro and Matthijs de Ligt for an initial £86m fee.

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