Manchester United’s transfer drive to sign Europe’s best young players put into context by Brexit announcement

Manchester United were preparing for how Brexit would impact the transfer system long before Tuesday’s announcement.

From January 1, English clubs will be barred from signing overseas talent under the age of 18.

Premier League sides will also be restricted to recruiting just six Under-21s from abroad per season, with players having to meet a points-based scoring system to qualify for a work permit.

It was an announcement that puts United’s business over the 12-18 months into context.

Willy Kambwala – the 16-year-old centre back signed from Sochaux in October - would have been out of their reach.

Likewise, Alejandro Garnacho – the same age as Kambwala – who was plucked from Atletico Madrid, also in October.

Before them were Marc Jurado, 16, from Barcelona; Real Madrid defender Alvaro Fernandez Carreras, 17; and Isak Hansen-Aaroen, 16, from Tromso.

Those teenagers have formed part of a concerted drive from United to sweep up the best emerging talent from the continent in the months before new regulations came in.

While nothing had been confirmed before the joint announcement from the FA, Premier League and EFL, it has been known for some time that Brexit would bring considerable changes to what has been something of a wild west when it comes to snapping up youth players from around Europe.

Last year United paid around £9million for Hannibal Mejbri. The French midfielder, who was 16 at the time, is considered a potential world-class talent, capable of following in the footsteps of Kylian Mbappe as the latest star come off the production line at Monaco.

Dillon Hoogewerf was signed from Ajax’s academy also at the age of 16.

There is a pattern of aggressive recruiting from United that they hope will future-proof them in terms of talent coming through the ranks – but it is also impossible to ignore the age profile of players that they would be barred from signing in the future.

Also, their business has not been limited to EU markets, with the club tasking scouts to search for gems within the UK, too, as they prepare for an expected inflation in the cost of homegrown players in response to the limits placed on overseas transfers.

Charlie McNeill was taken from neighbours Manchester City, while Sunderland striker Joe Hugill was signed this summer in face of competition from Tottenham and Arsenal.

Jude Bellingham is the type of generational talent United would have been interested in regardless – but their willingness to pay upwards of £30m for the midfielder, who ultimately rejected them in favour of Borussia Dortmund, can also be viewed in the context of the new laws.

What will be fascinating is how scouts will be asked to operate going forward.

Last year they sent out a call for experts in France and Spain to identify "world-class and emerging talent for the club, ensuring a talent pipeline and a world-class first-team squad."

Successful candidates had to demonstrate "a track record of identifying and scouting elite players."

That approach has led to the signings of the likes of Mejbri and Jurado – but securing those talents will be much more difficult and expensive now they cannot be picked up at such a young age.

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