Decision reached as raging star demands January exit and prime suitor steps in

A Manchester United star baffled by repeated snubs wants to leave ‘as soon as possible’ in January, and TEAMtalk believes the unusual transfer makes perfect sense given the strange circumstances United find themselves in.

The bulk of United’s summer signings came in the forward line, with Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko all arriving. With Bruno Fernandes now deployed in a deeper midfield role, the Mbeumo, Cunha, Sesko triumvirate represents Ruben Amorim’s strongest front three when all are fit.

That leaves Mason Mount, Amad Diallo and Joshua Zirkzee in reserve. But while Mount and Amad do receive their fair share of minutes, the same cannot be said for Zirkzee.

The Dutchman has racked up just 82 minutes of action across all competitions this term. He’s yet to start a match and was an unused substitute on four separate occasions.

The lack of opportunities and repeated selection snubs have not gone down well with the Man Utd frontman.

The Daily Mail recently claimed Zirkzee ‘wants out’ having been left bewildered at why his stock has dropped so suddenly and alarmingly.

Now, a fresh update from Gazzetta dello Sport has taken it a step further, claiming Zirkzee has ‘already made a decision’.

The 24-year-old reportedly wants to ‘leave as soon as possible’ and is so desperate to jump ship, he’ll even accept a loan move in January.

That has alerted Roma who are familiar with taking a chance on fringe Premier League players. Indeed, three of their loan signings over the summer – Kostas Tsimikas, Leon Bailey, Evan Ferguson – all came via Premier League sides.

Roma are giving serious consideration to launching a loan proposal and from the player’s end at least, they’ll face no issues getting Zirkzee’s green light.

Why January exit makes perfect sense in strange season

Mbeumo and Cunha are more than capable of moonlighting as the central striker in the event Sesko misses out.

Nevertheless, Zirkzee is technically second on Man Utd’s depth chart with regards to recognised centre-forwards.

As such, a mid-season exit ordinarily wouldn’t make much sense, but this is no ordinary season for two clear reasons.

Firstly, it’s a World Cup year and the Mail’s report highlighted Zirkzee’s growing fears he’ll miss out on selection with the Netherlands.

Zirkzee was omitted from the squad for the current international break and the best way to book his place on the flight to north America is playing regularly at club level. Clearly, that is not on the cards right now at Old Trafford.

Secondly, Man Utd are in the unfamiliar surroundings of having no European football this term. The current campaign is just the second time since the 1980s that Man Utd are not competing in Europe.

The fixture list is therefore sparser than ever, and especially so after United were bounced out of the League Cup by Grimsby Town.

United only have the Premier League and FA Cup to play for. Given that is the state of play, it seems fanciful to expect Amorim to rotate heavily when United’s FA Cup campaign begins, meaning Zirkzee won’t get a reprieve in the remaining cup competition either.

If there was ever a season where Man Utd can leave themselves slightly short on numbers it’s this one.

And if Zirkzee were to leave on loan in January and excel back in Serie A, he’ll do his transfer value and chances of earning a permanent move in the summer a world of good.

TEAMtalk has recently been informed Man Utd will explore the striker market once again in 2026. If a new frontman to provide greater competition for Sesko does arrive, Zirkzee’s days at Old Trafford will be numbered anyway and attention will quickly turn to how much of the £36.5m transfer fee United can get back.

Latest Man Utd news – Agreement confirmed / Adam Wharton and more…

In other news, Fabrizio Romano has verified claims Man Utd had struck a club-to-club agreement to sign an Arsenal star.

Elsewhere, the Daily Star stated Man Utd are proceeding with plans to sign Adam Wharton and believe a bid of £60m should be enough to get Crystal Palace’s green light.

Finally, TEAMtalk has taken a close look at how Man Utd’s line-up has changed across Ruben Amorim’s first 50 matches in charge.

Click here to read article