Man Utd risk repeating £37m transfer nightmare as they prepare to sell highly-rated wonderkid for loose change

MANCHESTER UNITED are on the verge of repeating a £37m mistake – but all could be forgiven yet. Selling 19-year-old left-back Harry Amass for a paltry £6m feels like a nightmare case of deja vu. Manchester United are likely to sell 19-year-old left back Harry Amass this summer Credit: Getty Left back Alvaro Carreras left United in 2024 before joining Real Madrid for £43m last summer Credit: Getty Just two years ago, United sold another promising young left-back, Alvaro Carreras, to Benfica for loose change in a £5.2m deal—only to watch in horror as he sealed a monster £42m move to Real Madrid last summer. Now, United risk walking down a similar road with Amass. Sign up for the Man United newsletter Thank you! United are likely to sell Amass this summer, with strong interest brewing in the Championship alongside potential Premier League admirers. And all while Old Trafford is crying out for left-backs as 31-year-old Luke Shaw enters the final year of his contract. With Michael Carrick deploying Patrick Dorgu on the wing, United must rely on natural right-backs Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui to cover the left flank. As United return to the Champions League, a far heavier fixture list awaits after last season’s bleak 40-match slog—and expecting Shaw to start every game is pure fantasy. Fans might forgive losing Amass—but only if management delivers a true marquee replacement for Shaw. United continue to monitor Newcastle 21-year-old England international Lewis Hall, who has emerged as the primary £50m–£60m target to solve the club’s left-back succession plan. Most read in Sport Alvaro Fernandez (L) and Alejandro Garnacho were once the shining lights of United’s academy Credit: Getty BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK If United can lure a proven, top-tier domestic talent like Hall or Fulham‘s Antonee Robinson, fans will quickly move past the frustration of losing Amass on the cheap. United’s youth prospects have taken centre stage over the months, but Amass, along with Shea Lacey, always felt like the one most ready to make the leap. The defender has been in and around first-team action since 2024, when Erik ten Hag was at the helm. Tipped as one of the academy players with a genuine chance at the club, Amass made his Premier League debut on his 18th birthday against Leicester in March 2025 under Ruben Amorim. Weeks later, the Londoner emerged as one of the few bright sparks in a 4-1 defeat to Newcastle on his full club debut, stepping up during one of Shaw’s extended spells on the sidelines. The teen made seven senior appearances before dazzling on loan at Sheffield Wednesday at the start of last season, sweeping back-to-back player of the month awards and scoring his first senior goal. Norwich City snapped him up in January for their promotion push, but just two weeks in, a hamstring injury in training prematurely ended his season. Harry Amass suffered a hamstring injury on loan during the second half of last season with Norwich Credit: Getty A new loan is unlikely as United have allowed the clock to run down on Amass’s contract, which was signed in 2023 and expires next summer. On the flip side, Amass represents a genuinely sellable asset capable of generating funds and several Championship clubs have registered an interest. In October 2025, Ratcliffe stated that the academy’s standards had “really slipped,” emphasising that it must consistently produce talent to support the club financially. Giving him first-team minutes could dramatically boost his value, but United must extend his contract first—otherwise, they risk developing him only to lose him for free next summer. Amass is hungry for consistent minutes after starting 21 Championship matches last term. While sources insist he isn’t pushing for an exit just yet, he could still be privately seeking a move—raising the threat of United losing yet another bright left-back prospect. Carreras once wanted a future at United, but he felt had no choice but to seal a move away in 2024. Despite loan spells at Preston and Granada, he never made a senior appearance for United before joining Benfica on a six-month deal in January 2024. Benfica then signed the Spaniard for £5.2m plus £2.6m in potential add-ons, with United securing both a 20 per cent sell-on clause and a buy-back option. Barely a year later, Carreras completed a £43m move back to his boyhood club, Real Madrid. Carreras, 23, impressed with 28 LaLiga appearances for Madrid last season, but Marc Cucurella’s £51m arrival under ex-United boss Jose Mourinho has left the Spaniard’s future up in the air. Now drawing interest from Chelsea, Carreras saw his value soar by 700 per cent. That £37m gap between his initial sale and what Madrid paid remains a stark misstep for Ineos. Comment now