The £34m Man Utd transfer hijack which could wreck Newcastle’s January plans

The combination of recent form and mounting injuries have thrown Manchester United’s need for reinforcements at full-back into sharp relief, and what always looked likely to be a priority in the January transfer window now appears to be a matter of the utmost urgency.

The Red Devils made approaches for several full-backs during the summer but failed to pull any of the deals they had in mind off, leaving them short on numbers and quality. It would be a major surprise if they didn’t address the role in any way over the coming winter window.

There have already been a host of transfer rumours suggesting potential additions for the new year, but one new report suggests that Manchester United might turn to a young player just starting to make a name for himself in Portugal – and it’s a player that Newcastle seem to be keen on as well.

The wonderkid wanted by both Manchester United & Newcastle

According to a report from Sport Witness – who cite the print edition of Portuguese newspaper O Jogo - both Manchester United and Newcastle are considering a January move for 18-year-old right-back Daniel Banjaqui, who broke into Benfica’s first team towards the end of last season and has continued to impress since.

Banjaqui only has six senior appearances to his name so far, but those include a very assured performance against AC Milan in a recent Europa League tie and he has also found some very strong form for Portugal’s Under-21s. As a result, elite teams are starting to take note of the youngster’s talent.

Manchester United and Newcastle are said to be among four teams who are actively monitoring the teenager, alongside Barcelona and Inter Milan. Clearly several sides are convinced that Banjaqui could have a very bright future ahead of him indeed.

The quartet are said to be “gathering information” about the terms and conditions of a possible transfer as well as continuing to keep an eye on his performances, and the reporting implies that discussions have gone far enough for Benfica to establish an approximate asking price.

It would, apparently, stand at around €35-40m (up to £34m) with the potential to grow should he earn more first-team minutes by the winter. For now, he remains a back-up, but he seems to have swiftly earned Marco Silva’s trust despite his lack of experience.

Benfica certainly have a lot of leverage. Banjaqui is currently tied down to a deal which runs until 2031 and which apparently includes a massive €80m (£70m) release clause, although that figure is disputed by TEAMtalk, who claim that his release clause is valued at €45m (£38m) in a story which also suggests that Chelsea are interested.

Whether any of his admirers are prepared to make a sufficiently substantial bid remains unknown. The reports from Sport Witness and O Jogo claim that a January offer is a possibility, but no bids have yet been made and the valuation that clubs such as Manchester United and Newcastle might have on Banjaqui uncertain.

Could Man Utd or Newcastle sign Banjaqui this January?

Given that Benfica enjoy an extremely strong negotiating position thanks to Banjaqui’s lengthy contract, it almost certainly would take a very significant transfer fee to make a deal plausible – and it looks to be relatively unlikely that either Manchester United or Newcastle spend such a high amount on a largely unproven player in January.

United have the transfer funds after failing to complete some of their intended summer transfers (some of which would likely have cost £30-40m or more) but in an age of relative austerity at the club, in which there is a remit to avoid the costly overspends which have defined the last decade of recruitment at Old Trafford, they will be leery of spending big money on a teenager.

It doesn’t help that for United, the priority is a senior left-back, rather than a promising right-back who is more likely to be a reliable asset in a year or two. Players like David Raum and Tyrick Mitchell, who are inside the final year of their current contracts, are more appealing given their current needs.

Newcastle, meanwhile, do want some more depth at full-back on both sides and can afford to be patient with a new right-back with both Tino Livramento and Amar Dedić – Banjaqui’s former team-mate – on the books, but are not believed to have sufficient transfer funds to spend £30m or more on a teenager on a whim.

Even if they did have the breathing space within the Premier League’s financial rules to pull a deal off, they may have more urgent priorities in other positions and sources suggest that they are postponing a minor defensive overhaul until next summer. Should they decide to make a move for Banjaqui at the proposed price point, it’s much more likely to come then.

Right now, Benfica’s asking price appears to be so high for a player with just half a dozen top-level games under his belt that it’s unlikely that a deal gets done over the winter – but Manchester United, Newcastle and many other teams will be keeping close tabs on Banjaqui’s progress, and it would be no surprise were he to make a big move eventually. The talent is there. Right now, however, the circumstances suggest that he will have to be patient.