Manchester United Set to Trigger Release Clause for Jorge Salinas
Manchester United’s rebuild under Michael Carrick may already count six new arrivals, but the club is not easing off. The next move could be a bold one: paying the release clause for one of Spain’s most talked-about young defenders, Jorge Salinas.
The 19-year-old, a product of Real Racing Club de Santander’s academy, only broke into the first team in 2024. That rise has been sharp and noisy. In a short space of time he has gone from local prospect to a defender courted by some of Europe’s biggest clubs, with both Barcelona and United tracking his progress.
Barcelona like him. They just don’t like his price.
According to Spanish outlet SPORT, United are prepared to meet Salinas’ €16m (£14m) release clause. Barcelona, by contrast, have no intention of triggering it. That stance has opened the door for the Premier League side to move to the front of the queue for a player widely viewed as one of the standout young defenders in Spanish football.
They are not alone in that queue.
Atletico Madrid are also in the frame, but their plans are tied to another deal. Reports relayed by Sport Witness suggest Atleti are waiting to finalise Matteo Ruggeri’s transfer to Aston Villa before making their own push for Salinas. Villa are said to have agreed a package worth €18m plus €6m in bonuses — around £20m — with Los Rojiblancos for Ruggeri. Once that domino falls, Atletico are expected to turn fully towards the Racing defender.
So the market circles, the numbers are clear, and yet the player’s current club keeps sending the same message: he doesn’t want to go.
Racing head coach Jorge Salinas – no relation to the defender – pushed back this week against the constant noise around his young star and team-mate Gustavo Puerta.
“Their professionalism doesn't surprise me. What surprises me is that people are constantly talking about the departure of two of our players [Salinas and Puerta], when they have contracts and are our players,” he said.
He then underlined just how central they remain to his plans.
“They're very important to us. I don't want them to leave. And they show every day that they don't either. But we know how this world works and there are release clauses. If a team comes along and pays the clause, they cease to be our players."
That last line is the key. Racing can insist, argue, and plead, but the power in this story sits inside a legal figure: €16m.
Sporting director Chema Aragon struck a similar tone last week. He reiterated the club’s desire to build, not sell, but acknowledged the reality of modern football when giants circle.
“There's little you can do if a giant appears,” Aragon admitted. “We value the assets we have, we consider them important.
“For the club, at this time, there is no other option than to try to strengthen the team and not weaken it by losing stars. The reality is that the club that wants him has to come along with an offer.”
That is exactly what United are said to be willing to do. No drawn-out haggling, no low-ball opening gambit — just a straight shot at the clause.
For Carrick, Salinas would represent something different to the headline, ready-made signings of summers past. This is a bet on potential, a defender shaped in the tactical and technical demands of Spanish football, with the profile to grow into a long-term piece of United’s back line.
Barcelona’s reluctance to go to €16m leaves a gap. Atletico’s interest is conditional on Ruggeri’s move. Racing want to keep him but are bound by the contract.
United, if they really do step up and pay the clause, could turn all that noise into a decisive move — and steal a march on two of Spain’s heavyweights in the process.
