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New Manchester United CEO Omar Berrada acknowledged the risk that came with paying £80m for centre-back Harry Maguire when the Red Devils beat Manchester City to his signature in 2019.
City and United were both looking to land Maguire but he ultimately ended up on the red side of Manchester after City declined to match the £80m offer accepted by Leicester City.
Involved in City’s decision to walk away from Maguire was Berrada, whose move to Old Trafford was confirmed on Saturday. Back in 2020, after City finally ended their centre-back search with a £65m move for Ruben Dias, Berrada offered an insight into his approach to the deal.
“When you make investments of that type, when you get it wrong it has a significant impact over many years so we needed to get it right at the right valuation at the right time but more importantly for the right player,” he told the Manchester Evening News.
“In the same way that we didn’t rush into buying a centre-back last season after not wanting to sign Maguire for that valuation, this summer we had a very clear idea of what we wanted and fortunately we got the player we wanted at the valuation that we wanted.”
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Eagle-eyed United fans have been digging into Berrada’s old social media activity following news of his switch to Old Trafford, highlighting a number of posts which appear to revel in United’s struggles.
Among the posts which have resurfaced are Berrada sharing criticisms of former United boss David Moyes, as well as questioning the deal to sign Angel Di Maria in 2014 and the wider ownership of the Glazer family.
United are yet to confirm Berrada’s start date, with Patrick Stewart continuing in an interim role for the time being, but hopes are high for the 46-year-old, whose role in City’s rise to the top of the mountain has been widely praised.
Credited for a key role in City’s acquisition of striker Erling Haaland in 2022, Berrada is now tasked with replicating that success on the other side of the City under the incoming INEOS ownership.
