Man Utd could be forced into transfer rethink as £120m target's struggles continues

Manchester United were linked with a mega-money move for Brighton's Carlos Baleba in the summer - but the midfielder has endured a season to forget ever since being told he would remain at the Amex.

It was well documented that the Red Devils wanted to bolster their midfield, but ultimately failed to land any new face in that area. It remains a problem position and the expectation was that they would return to see if they could lure Baleba away from the Seagulls next year.

In light of his performances, though, a rethink could be on the cards at Old Trafford. After all, United have been stung numerous times in the transfer market, spending huge sums on players, only to see them underwhelm in a red shirt.

Unfortunately for Baleba, his struggles continued at the weekend as he was hooked - for a third time - at the interval. The Cameroon star has started six of their seven Premier League matches, but Baleba is yet to complete a full 90 minutes, despite excelling in his debut season at the Amex. On Saturday, he was replaced by Georginio Rutter with Brighton trailing 1-0 at Wolves - but they did go on to score in the second half to grab a draw.

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Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler previously replaced his midfielder at half-time in their loss to Everton in August as well as last month's home draw against Tottenham. On this occasion he was hauled off as a precaution with Baleba on a yellow card.

The German said: “No, it was because of the yellow card. Therefore, that's what I mean, it impacts the whole match plan, it impacts everything. So that's why it's very frustrating if you get for the first foul, always a yellow card. In my opinion there were no yellow cards, and therefore I think the balance has to be better.”

Hurzeler was honest about the impact United's interest had on Baleba during the transfer window. Brighton had previously seen midfielder excel under them, only to move on for huge profits. Moises Caicedo being the most high profile example.

The Brighton boss conceded "it's normal that there will be some waves in their development" when addressing the dip in Baleba's form. He told talkSPORT: "I'm confident that we will get the best out of him, I think he needs time, he's a young boy, his development in the last year was incredible.

"Maybe it went a little bit too fast, there was a lot of rumours about him, he played an incredible season, but I always try to be humble with the players."

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