Carlos Baleba: How Brighton rebuffed Man United interest in “massively important” midfielder with fresh transfer stance confirmed

Brighton & Hove Albion chairman Tony Bloom has offered an insight into the transfer negotiations with Manchester United over a deal for midfielder Carlos Baleba.

The Red Devils were keen to bolster Ruben Amorim’s squad with a new midfielder in the summer and Baleba was identified as one of their primary targets.

However, it is understood that Man United were unwilling to meet Brighton’s €120m (£104.6m) asking price for Baleba and a big-money switch to Old Trafford failed to materialise.

Baleba has since struggled to find his best form for the Seagulls and head coach Fabian Hurzeler recently admitted that the 21-year-old’s early-season struggles could be related to the speculation surrounding his future.

Just over six weeks on from the summer transfer window closing, Bloom has confirmed that Man United “went away” from negotiations over a deal for Baleba after being informed by Brighton that the “massively important” midfielder was not for sale.

Brighton remain determined to keep hold of Man Utd-linked Baleba

Speaking to The Argus, Bloom said: “I don’t think Baleba was a saga. There was interest from Manchester United, and we said that he wasn't available this summer and they went away.

“So we've had many bigger sagas in the past, but Carlos Baleba, his improvement has been immense. Massively important player to this football club, and just delighted that he's with us for this season.”

Baleba is under contract at the Amex Stadium until June 2028, but speculation over a potential exit continues to linger, with reports claiming that Man United could face stern competition from rivals Liverpool and Manchester City for his signature.

Speculation over a possible January exit has been mooted, but the expectation is that the Cameroon international will remain at the Amex Stadium until next summer at the earliest.

Should Baleba leave Brighton, he would follow in the footsteps of a host of Seagulls star to depart the club, including Chelsea trio Moises Caicedo, Marc Cucurella and Robert Sanchez, Liverpool’s Alexis Mac Allister and Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard.

Bloom has acknowledged that some of Brighton’s best players “will be sold”, but he has insisted that the Seagulls should not be labelled as a selling club.

Brighton 'are not a selling club', but all hope is not lost for Man Utd in Baleba pursuit

“We know that occasionally some of our best players will be sold, but when that happens, we don't want too many at any one time,” said Bloom.

“And then we always try and make sure that the players coming in, maybe players we've brought in previous seasons, can help with that situation, but that's true of almost every club.

“The best players, unless you're potentially Man City, Liverpool, [Real] Madrid, PSG, almost every club's best players do get sold, and it's up to us to make sure that we are prepared as much as we can.

“We can't always get the timing right, but we are as prepared as much as we can be to make sure that, at the start of every season, we have a really, really competitive squad.”

Mitoma “absolutely committed” to Brighton, Bloom confirms

Meanwhile, Bloom has also addressed speculation over Kaoru Mitoma’s future at Brighton after the winger was the subject of interest from Saudi Pro League clubs earlier this year.

“There was some interest in January, but Kaoru is absolutely committed to the football club,” Bloom insisted. “Another key player for us, he has done sensationally well. Again, delighted that he's part of our squad.”

Both Mitoma and Baleba remain key figures in Hurzeler’s squad, with Brighton currently sitting 12th in the Premier League table and five points behind the top four after seven games.