Manchester United target Bailey returns to make impact

Jamaican star linked to a move to the Theatre of Dreams

THEATRE OF DREAMS: Could Leon Bailey be playing at Old Trafford in the future?

JAMAICAN SOCCER star Leon Bailey’s week has been a welcome boost, following his shockingly lacklustre display against potential suitors Bayern Munich on 6 June, with a lucrative summer move to England on the cards and setting up his club’s opening goal on June 17 against FC Köln.

After the Bayer Leverkusen ace became a proud father to a son on Sunday, there has been the added joy for the winger that Manchester United are chasing his signature. And he celebrated the birth with a goal assist in their 3-1 triumph over FC Köln.

Although it was not Bailey’s best performance, hauled off after 63 minutes, he managed to make an impact for Leverkusen. The club, who are chasing a Champions League spot, moved up to fourth in the German top tier following this latest success.

In his first match back for Leverkusen, after missing the previous two games for his child’s birth, the 22-year-old set up fellow midfielder Sven Bender with a telling corner for a seventh minute lead.

The unmarked German starlet Kai Havertz scored six minutes before half-time to put the hosts in charge. But Sebastian Bornauw reduced the arrears on 58 minutes with a solid header, with Bailey shortly substituted in a tactical move by head coach Peter Rosz. The contest soon became a midfield battle of atrition, with Moussa Diaby polishing off FC Köln with the third goal seven minutes from the final whistle.

Bailey, who appears unhappy plying his trade in the German Bundesliga under Rosz, has three years left on his contract with a clutch of clubs following his progress. Bailey turned down a £30m move to Chelsea two seasons ago, when Italian Antonio Conte was in charge, with his stepfather and agent Craig Butler adamant that his protege needs to hone his trade in Germany.

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But after last term’s indifferent campaign, hindered by injury, and failing to live up to his high expectations during this stop-start season – with niggling injuries, a pair of red cards and falling out of favour under Rosz – then an escape route could be just what Bailey seeks.

WANTED MAN: Leon Bailey

Following the coronavirus pandemic, Europe’s leading clubs are unlikely to be splashing the cash. And that’s exactly why the Manchester United have become the latest English Premier League to be heavily linked with the £40m-rated Kingston-born attacking midfielder.

Manchester United coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been eyeing up English rising stars Jack Grealish (Aston Villa) and Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund) but, with their values at £75m and £100m respectively, Bailey seems an absolute bargain.

Radar

Bailey, who captured the 2015-16 Belgian Young Player of the Year award at Gent prior to his £20m move to Leverkusen three years ago, remains on the radar of numerous leading clubs.

He made such an immediate impact in Germany that he was voted the league’s 2017-18 Most Promising Newcomer in his maiden season.

His spellbinding performances and electrifying pace in the Bundesliga attracted interest from the English Premier League (EPL), with both Manchester City and Manchester United monitoring the youngster. 

With European experience in both the Europa League and Champions League, Bailey has the sort of pedigree that Manchester United require.

Despite making over a century of appearances for Leverkusen, netting 24 goals, and playing only four matches for Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz, it has to be fair to say that Bailey is the unfinished article at the moment.

His stuttering season, bagging just five league goals, has resulted in his current value standing at around half of the £75m transfer fee that Leverkusen placed on Bailey from two years ago.

Real Madrid

Other top clubs outside England – including Bayern Munich, Italian outfits AC Milan and Roma, Spanish giants Real Madrid and a string of Major League Soccer sides in North America – are reportedly keeping an eye on Bailey’s progress. However, because of his failure to maintain his fantastic form over the past 16 months their interest has waned.

Manchester United, who are rebuilding their squad with talented youngsters as part of Solskjaer’s remit, could be a perfect fit for Bailey if they are willing to gamble on the him.

Other EPL clubs, if they signed him, would be extremely likely to loan him immediately and that was another factor preventing Bailey signing for Chelsea and moving to England a few years ago.

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