5 free agents Manchester United could sign in January

Brahim Diaz (Manchester City)

This one is not so much for the practicality as it is for the satisfaction of getting one up on the noisy Manchester United neighbours.

Manchester City snagged Brahim Diaz from Malaga in 2015 for just £200,000 for their youth academy. He made his debut for the senior team just a year later, coming on as a substitute against Swansea in the League Cup. He was just 17 then.

Diaz is a technically gifted attacking midfielder with a low centre of gravity and brilliant ball control. His playing style has evoked comparisons to Leo Messi and David Silva, among others.

So far, he’s made only 14 appearances in all competitions for City, scoring two goals. Pep Guardiola has plenty of options in midfield, and it looks unlikely that he’ll break into the first team any time soon.

But City is obviously grooming him and Phil Foden to eventually take over the reins of their midfield from De Bruyne and Silva.

He recently scored both of City’s goals in a 2-0 win over Fulham in the Carabao Cup, helping them progress to the quarterfinals.

They are, however, still at an impasse regarding his contract. The 19-year-old’s current deal runs out next summer, but he is reportedly unwilling to extend it because of a lack of game time.

City and Guardiola will be very conscious of avoiding the mistake they made with Jadon Sancho, the18-year-old winger who is lighting up the Bundesliga with Dortmund.

So it is unlikely that they’ll let him go easily, but if United can pull off a deal before City can conclude talks with him, it’d be a huge coup.