Carlos Baleba may have to wait until OCTOBER to make his debut for Man Utd if he completes his switch to Old Trafford, according to reports.
The Athletic‘s David Ornstein broke the news on Wednesday morning that the Red Devils are close to agreeing a deal for the Cameroon international.
However, the Daily Mail‘s Simon Jones quickly dampened excitement by revealing that Baleba’s ankle injury is set to keep him sidelined until the “end of September”. Needless to say, fans on X were not particularly happy about the length of time the player will be out for:
Yes, signing a injured player. Just what we need
— Robert Jaggers (@rjag1607) August 19, 2026
Mad so we've just splashed 65m on an injured player. Hope it works but this is just stupid
— SBKutd (@SBKTheMaster) August 19, 2026
You cant make this up
— FRagDaddy (@GavinDaniels95) August 19, 2026
Please do not buy mount 2.0
— Bright West (@BrightWext) August 19, 2026
Lols. Clueless Man United waited for last minute to be under pressure and will end up paying 75 million for injured Baleba. Truly embarrassing performance by INEOS and their friends.
— Humbulani (@HumbulaniNd) August 19, 2026
Why are Man Utd signing an injured player?
Many supporters will be questioning the decision to pursue a midfielder who will miss five Premier League games, as well as a Carabao Cup tie and the first Champions League group stage match.
However, Baleba is a long-term target for Director of Football Jason Wilcox, having originally tried to sign him last summer.
It appears to be an opportunistic move, with the player’s stock pretty low both due to his injury and his poor form over the past 12 months.
When could Baleba make his debut for United?
There is an international break at the beginning of October, so there are two likely fixtures in mid-October where fans could see the 22-year-old in action for the first time.
Baleba could feature against Tottenham at Old Trafford on October 10th, or in the second Champions League group stage game a few days later.
Either way, it could be up to two months before the midfielder is seen in a red shirt, which is clearly far from ideal, especially as he is set to become the club’s most expensive addition of the summer, with the fee expected to be above £65m.
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