Manchester United transfer news: 'Fair valuation' offer made for key Ruben Amorim midfield target as club continue revamp

Manchester United have reportedly made an offer for Sporting Lisbon midfielder Morten Hjulmand worth an initial £35m, an offer that the English club have deemed fair value.

The Red Devils will take on Bournemouth in the early hours of Thursday morning, though boss Ruben Amorim has confirmed that Bryan Mbeumo will not feature.

Mbeumo's absence will come as a disappointment to fans, who are keen to see how he will link up with fellow summer signing Matheus Cunha, with hopes that the pair can transform the team's attacking displays.

Supporters are also hopeful that Amorim will be the given the players he needs to improve his side's performances in the middle of the pitch considering the club struggled in that area throughout 2024-25.

Calciomercato claim that the Red Devils have made an offer worth £35m for Sporting midfielder Hjulmand, but that the Portuguese side want close to £43m for the Danish international.

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Hjulmand in profile: Stats and playing style assessed

The Sporting midfielder can be best described as a destroyer, with his aggressive tackling style helping him effectively defend his penalty area.

No other player for the Portuguese side made more tackles in the league (54), and he also won an impressive 56.4% of his aerial duels.

The 26-year-old's tackle win percentage of 66.2% was higher than all three of Bruno Fernandes (59.5%), Casemiro (60.2%) and Manuel Ugarte (63.6%).

Hjulmand's energy would undoubtedly be a welcome boost for Amorim, whose team found it difficult to compete with more physically imposing midfields last season.

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Does Hjulmand make sense for Amorim and United?

Hjulmand was previously coached by Amorim at Sporting, so there is an argument that he would be able to come in and make an immediate impact considering he is familiar with the manager's 3-4-3 system.

His partner in a double pivot would almost certainly be Fernandes, but that partnership may not be balanced enough to compete in the Premier League.

Fernandes is not an expert in deep buildup, and placing more passing responsibility onto Hjulmand could be problematic given he is not as comfortable when he plays as his side's orchestrator.

Kobbie Mainoo is capable on the ball, so perhaps Amorim could regularly rotate the Englishman into the side when he feels his side are struggling to progress possession.