Manchester United have landed on Ollie Watkins amid their search for a proven goalscorer.
Indeed, INEOS are now seemingly abolishing their recently implemented law of only signing younger players by targeting the 29-year-old this summer.
It comes after they were snubbed by both Liam Delap and Viktor Gyokeres, who favoured moves to Chelsea and Arsenal, respectively. Reports have also suggested they approached Victor Osimhen to gauge the possibility of him lowering his wages to make the move to Old Trafford, but he rebuffed the proposal and is now closing in on an imminent switch to Galatasaray.
If you want to take a punt at how the players will fare for their new teams, take a look at the latest football odds.
Bookmakers are already pricing up Watkins’ potential goal tally at United, while odds on Osimhen firing Galatasaray to league success have seen a shift. With the summer transfer window heating up, savvy punters are keeping a close eye on how these squad moves will impact title races, top-scorer bets, and Champions League qualification markets. It’s the perfect time to dive into the numbers and make some smart football predictions.
United’s interest in Watkins: The state of play
As things stand, United have yet to materialise their interest by initiating talks or submitting a bid Villa’s way.
The Midlands outfit are, understandably, reluctant to sanction the exit of their prolific frontman, although they may feel compelled to in order to avoid a PSR breach. In the event they do open the door to his departure, The Mirror claims Villa will demand £60 million.
Such a fee is likely to price United out of a move unless they facilitate outgoings of their own first, with Antony, Alejandro Garnacho, Marcus Rashford, Tyrell Malacia and Jadon Sancho all expected to depart before 2025/2026 gets underway.
Aside from the wantaway quintet, United do have the option of opposing Rasmus Hojlund’s wishes and selling him to one of his suitors.
He recently publicly declared his desire to see out his contract with the club amid interest from Inter Milan and other Serie A sides. However, you couldn’t blame the key decision-makers for accepting any potential offer anyway based on the lacklustre campaign he oversaw in 2024/2025.
Hojlund found the back of the net just four times in 32 Premier League appearances last season, scoring six fewer goals than the 10 he managed in his maiden term.
In comparison, Watkins tallied 16 goals and eight assists in 24/25 and, in 23/24, oversaw a career-best year when notching 19 goals and 15 assists in 37 matches.
The England international is seven years older than 22-year-old Hojlund, but it’s not as if the latter has shown enough promise to convince United or their fans that he has what it takes to become an unstoppable No.9.
Nonetheless, United will see in 2025/2026 with a huge contest when hosting old foes Arsenal at Old Trafford on opening day before taking on Manchester City at the Etihad and welcoming Chelsea to M16 in back-to-back gameweeks in September.
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