Fabrizio Romano: Man United set to confirm signing of Sekou Kone

Manchester United are set to confirm the signing of 17-year-old midfielder Sekou Kone in the next twenty-four hours, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Italian transfer guru reveals a deal to sign the Malian starlet will be completed as the Red Devils have “signed all documents” to allow the transfer to receive official approval.

Tweet: “All documents are ready for 2006 born Mali talent Sékou Kone to complete his move to Manchester United. Exclusive story to be confirmed soon as United have signed all docs and formal steps will follow in next 24h. One for the future.”

As relayed by The Peoples Person here, United fought off interest from Europe’s elite to sign Kone from Guidars FC for a fee worth “€1.5 million plus bonuses” last week.

Kone received glowing reports for his performances for Mali during the U-17 World Cup last year in Indonesia. Though Germany would emerge as the tournament’s winners, the African side were a revelation as they impressed against the world’s best countries, eventually securing a 3rd place finish with an emphatic 3-0 win over Argentina.

Kone, stationed at the heart of Mali’s midfield, was the literal and metaphorical heartbeat of the team.

German reporter Christofer Michel reveals United’s recruitment department have been extensively tracking the 18-year-old, even prior to INEOS taking over the football operation at Old Trafford in February.

Tweet: “Sekou #Koné transfer has been many months in the making – he was already on the list before INEOS took over at #MUFC. He already caught the eye of #MUFC scouts at the U17 World Cup. It was very tough negotiations with the club’s advisors and managers. Great transfer.”

It is an encouraging sign that, despite INEOS not being directly responsible for United’s pursuit of Kone, the club’s new rulers have empowered the scouting system by sanctioning a deal for a player they have strongly recommended.

Far too often under the incompetent watch of the Glazer family, United’s recruitment department were ignored and deals for talented youngsters they had identified were never acted upon.

There would then be considerable frustration as these players popped up at other clubs in the Premier League with a lingering sense of ‘what if?’ underpinning their progress. The case of Moises Caicedo – identified by club scouts in Ecuador but not followed up by the executive branch – is a recent example of this issue.

The fact that United have sanctioned three separate moves for highly-rated youngsters – Kone, Chido Obi-Martin and Samuel Lusale – shows INEOS will not fall foul of the same mistakes of their predecessors.

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