A New Growth Chapter for United
Manchester United is moving to finalize the deal for Christian Arozko, a 17-year-old defensive midfielder who already captains Colombia's youth national teams and is viewed as one of the brightest prospects in South American football.
According to The Sun, the player had joined his current club Fortaleza earlier this year, but United acted swiftly to seal the transfer before other clubs could enter the race.
Arozko made nine appearances for Colombia's under-17 squad in 2024 and is regarded as one of the continent's most promising talents.
He is expected to join United officially after turning 18 in July, in line with FIFA's rules on international transfers of minors.
MU has long wanted to avoid repeating the failed Caicedo chase of 2020, when the club pulled out amid agency disputes and a 5.5 million pounds price tag, only for Caicedo to join Chelsea for a British-record fee 115 million pounds two and a half years later.
The deal sits within a broader shift toward South American markets that United has pursued, following last summer’s signing of left-back Diego León (18).
New sporting director Jason Wilkox is leading a bold talent-pitch, with The Sun reporting the club is also eyeing Angers' left-back Dan Sinat, 19.
Recently, United restructured its scouting network, trimming the global pool from more than 100 scouts to ten, while giving acquisitions chief Christopher Flivel broader authority. That simpler approach already seems to bear fruit, with Arozko's arrival signaling United's resolve to adopt a more decisive and bold transfer policy.
Yet the club still faces pressure after finishing last season 15th in the Premier League, despite big outlays on players like Matheus Conia and Bryan Mbeumo, and despite beating Arsenal and Liverpool to Benjamin Sesko this summer.
The latest setback, a 3-1 loss to Brentford, has intensified pressure on coach Ruben Amorim, but club bosses insist they will back him to steer the team back on track.
Despite the move, United's modern scouting and development policy exposes both opportunities and risks under FIFA's youth-protection rules, delaying full integration until players reach the legal age.
Since Brexit, work-permit points complicate future first-team registrations for some players unless they meet national-team or continental performance thresholds.
The club has, in the past, signed 16-year-olds like Marc Jurado from Barcelona in 2020, Álvaro Carreras from Real Madrid, Isak Hansen-Aroinen from Tromsø, and Will Kampwala from Sochou at 16.
Alejandro Garnacho rose quickly from the academy to the first team, then moved on to Chelsea in 2025 amid technical disagreements.
Additionally, Marcus Jurado joined United from Barcelona in 2020 at 16, after turning down renewal offers in Catalonia. There was also Álvaro Carreras from Real Madrid in 2020 at 17, Isak Hansen-Aroein from Tromsø in the same year at 16, and Will Kampwala from Sochou at 16.
These examples reveal United's policy of betting early on talent and developing them step by step. In Garnacho's case, the player reaches the first team quickly and makes a tangible sporting and financial impact; in other cases, the player goes through loan spells or eventual sale while preserving the asset's value.
Signing a talent at 16 or 17 years old is usually done before the price explosion, allowing the club to exploit the value gap when promoting to the first team or later in the transfer market. Garnacho's case—nearly free entry to a huge sale to Chelsea—summarizes this economic logic.
Also, exposing the player early to a structured development system (pressing style, inverted-wing roles, possession rules) raises the odds of success compared to a fully formed player who must be reshaped.
With English clubs no longer able to register foreign players under 18, timing becomes part of the deal: early agreement, then waiting until the 18th birthday. It makes proactive moves a competitive necessity, not a luxury.
But the flip side is clear: FIFA's minor-protection rules put deals in compliance limbo and delay full integration until players reach the age of 18.
Work-permit points after Brexit further complicate future first-team registration unless players meet national or continental credentials; the barrier to move from academy to first team remains steep at a club as big as United, requiring smart loan pathways and tailored development tracks.
It's no secret that the competition for young talent is fierce, but United's new policy aims to strike early, develop them in-house, and cash in when the time is right.
Punchline 1: If youth development were a video game, United just unlocked Turbo Academy and forgot to plug in the power cord.
Punchline 2: By the time these kids debut for the first team, the stadium might have changed names again—it's not transfer policy, it's a time machine.
