It won’t be long until we finally get to say “welcome to the 2026 summer transfer window, Manchester United.” Old Trafford has yet to complete a single piece of major headline worthy transfer business this summer. No finalized player sales or acquisitions, yet, but you still have that agreement United made with Atalanta for Brazilian international Ederson.
Just to make it absolutely clear, this Ederson is Ederson Silva, a 26-year-old midfielder.
We are not talking about Ederson, the long time Manchester City and now Fenerbahce goalkeeper, whose full name is Ederson Santana de Moraes.
United reached a deal worth €45m (£39m, $52m) with the Italian club in early June for the midfield man, but it was never finalized due to the 2026 World Cup. With the deal still not closed, and United simply not achieving much of anything (sorry, another loan out deal for Andre Onana, to the same club he was at last year, doesn’t get as a “big deal”) anywhere else this transfer window, speculation mounted that this deal might collapse.
There were even reports originating in Brazil this past weekend that this transfer transaction might actually be off. That is not the case however, as both the Daily Mail and Team Talk claim that the deal is still on, and actually, even on schedule. Ederson will have his second medical for the club, and if that sounds a bit odd, well sure, it is a unique situation.
Ederson had his first/initial medical for United before the World Cup. Then he got a late call up to the Brazil national team, and thus his service to Selecao stalled the completion of this deal.
But now, Brazil is eliminated from the tournament, having been dumped out by Norway in the round of 16 yesterday.
It’s Brazil’s earliest exit from the tournament since 1990, and now Ederson will undergo his second/full medical examination for United.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, Ratings and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.