Manchester United's Striker Dilemma: The Future of Igor Matanovic

Manchester United are bracing for a late twist in their attacking plans – and Igor Matanovic sits right at the crossroads.

With Joshua Zirkzee’s future at Old Trafford uncertain and Fiorentina circling, United have quietly moved themselves into position for the Freiburg striker, joining Tottenham and the Serie A club in a three-way tussle that could reshape the final days of the window.

Zirkzee domino holds the key

INEOS set out this summer with a clear blueprint: fix the midfield first. Carlos Baleba, Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos have all arrived from Brighton, Aston Villa and Chelsea, reshaping the core of Erik ten Hag’s options. Karl Darlow has come in as back-up goalkeeper on a free, while young defender Tynan Thompson joined from Tottenham in a deal worth around £8m.

The plan was simple after that: tidy up around the edges. A left-back, maybe a left-winger, and if the right opportunity emerged, a striker.

That last part now threatens to become the headline.

Zirkzee has attracted firm interest from both the Premier League and Serie A, and as Ben Jacobs has outlined, United’s stance is straightforward: if Zirkzee goes, a new No 9 jumps from “nice to have” to urgent business.

“A left-back seems to be the priority,” Jacobs told Betway Insider, before underlining the caveat that could rip up the script. United, he said, will stay “alert” to a centre-forward, and if Zirkzee leaves in the final hours or days of the window, the need for a replacement becomes “more pressing”. If they cannot bring one in, they will simply refuse to sanction his departure.

That is the tightrope they are walking.

Fiorentina move, Matanovic rises

The market around them is already shifting. With Como set to complete a deal for Moise Kean before the deadline, Fiorentina have turned their attention firmly to Zirkzee and are now in what Fabrizio Romano describes as “advanced talks” with United over the Netherlands international.

At the same time, La Viola have been tracking another option: Freiburg’s Igor Matanovic.

Thursday’s print edition of Gazzetta dello Sport, relayed by Sport Witness, describes a move for the Croatian as “difficult but not impossible” for Fiorentina. The complication? The growing interest from England.

Manchester United and Tottenham have both stepped into the frame, and that changes the landscape. Matanovic hit 11 Bundesliga goals last season and is already being talked about in Croatia as the “heir to Mario Mandzukic” – a label that tends to follow a certain type of centre-forward: physical, relentless, ruthless in the box.

For Fiorentina, juggling Zirkzee and Matanovic has become a delicate equation. For United, the equation is simpler. If Zirkzee is sold and Omar Marmoush completes his expected move to Tottenham, the path to Matanovic suddenly looks far clearer.

The question is whether United are prepared to act decisively, or whether they gamble on stability and keep Zirkzee in-house.

Left-back search runs in parallel

All of this plays out against a separate but equally important subplot: the left-back.

United’s recruitment team have spent much of the window weighing up that position, and Jacobs says it remains one to watch right up until the deadline. Alejandro Balde has been offered around, with Barcelona understood to be ready to approve an exit at around €45m.

That kind of fee does not fit neatly with United’s longer-term planning. The club are thought to be more inclined to secure a loan, ideally with an option to buy, rather than commit to an outright purchase now.

The reason sits in 2027. That is when they want a clear run at their preferred long-term target, Lewis Hall. Hall is not considered available this late in the current window, which leaves United with an uncomfortable choice: commit big money now, or find a stopgap and keep the powder dry for next year.

“Manchester United have to understand whether it’s better to sign a left-back now, or to find somebody that’s more of a stopgap, and then to go for their ultimate lead target in Lewis Hall next year,” Jacobs explained. Balde is one possibility, but far from the only name on the desk. Jorge Salinas and David Raum have also been offered, even if, for now, nothing has moved beyond initial discussions.

So United sit here, days from the deadline, with two live fronts: a left-back they want on their own terms, and a striker chase that hinges on whether they cash in on Zirkzee.

If Fiorentina push Zirkzee over the line and Spurs close out Marmoush, the stage is set. Do United step into the spotlight for Igor Matanovic – or decide that, this time, standing still is the smarter move?