Manchester United Sign Carlos Baleba for £70m Amid Troy Parrott's Anticipation
Manchester United have pushed their summer rebuild deeper into midfield, completing the signing of Brighton’s Carlos Baleba in a deal worth up to £70m (€81m).
The Cameroon international becomes the third midfielder through the door at Old Trafford in this window, following Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans. United’s engine room, so often criticised for its lack of legs and balance, is being ripped up and rebuilt on the fly. Baleba arrives as the most expensive piece of that puzzle, a statement of both faith and urgency.
Celtic cruising, Scales on the bench
On the continent, Celtic are back at it in Champions League qualifying. They face LASK tonight, carrying a commanding 3-0 lead from the first leg. It’s the kind of cushion that usually turns a second leg into a test of professionalism rather than nerve.
Liam Scales has to be patient. He starts on the bench, watching on as Celtic look to finish the job and edge closer to the group stages they regard as their rightful stage.
Parrott mania in Seville
Further south, the noise is all about Troy Parrott.
The Irish striker, fresh from his move to Real Betis from AZ Alkmaar last week, could make his La Liga debut tonight away to Valencia at the Mestalla. Kick-off is at 8pm, and Betis are doing nothing to cool the excitement.
The club’s social media team have gone early on the hype. Two posts in five minutes: one showing Parrott’s pristine No 19 shirt, another capturing a young fan waving a flag with the message, “what’s the craic Troy?” It feels less like a quiet bedding-in and more like a welcome party.
For now, though, he waits.
Manuel Pellegrini has already made it clear Parrott is in contention, even if he has barely trained with his new teammates.
“Troy has not been working with us for a long time,” Pellegrini said. “He joined us only a day before the last game. But he has been working hard and he is on the list because he is ready to play.”
Ready, but not guaranteed. The instinct around the camp is that Parrott will start on the bench and be unleashed later in the game. A starting spot would be a bonus, not an expectation.
Betis already flying
Betis arrive in Valencia with momentum and status. They are in the Champions League this season and opened their league campaign with a win over Real Sociedad, secured by a Rodrigo Riquelme goal.
Pellegrini’s front line is not easily cracked. Antony has one wing nailed down, Riquelme the other. Through the middle, Cucho Hernández keeps his place after an 11-goal La Liga return last season – a solid benchmark in a league that punishes wastefulness. That is the role Parrott must eventually steal.
Betis line up as follows: Valles; Ortiz, Gomez, Llorente, Firpo; Fornals, Bernal, Deossa; Antony, Hernandez, Riquelme. No Parrott in the XI. Not yet.
Leaving England to find himself
If there is pressure tonight, it is a different kind to the weight he once carried in England.
As Gavin Cooney has written, forsaking English football has been the making of Parrott. The move to the Eredivisie allowed him to grow away from the glare, to play in a league whose style and tempo suited him, and to escape the swirl of noise that built around him as a teenager.
“Trying to live up to the hype at such a young age, it was never going to happen that early because football isn’t so easy,” he said in 2024. “For me it was more about growing up a bit and trying to block out the noise.”
That version of Parrott – older, sharper, more grounded – walks into a Betis side with Champions League football and a demanding fanbase. The competition is fierce, the stage bigger, the scrutiny different. But it certainly beats another season grinding in the Championship for West Ham.
Tonight, he waits for the call at the Mestalla.
When it comes, how quickly can he turn all that hype into something permanent?
