Manchester United reportedly failed with a last-ditch attempt to sign Julio Enciso on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion, with the attacker instead expected to join Ipswich Town for the remainder of the campaign.
There has recently been a host of speculation surrounding Enciso's future, with Brighton deciding that his development would be best-served by spending the second half of the season on loan at another club.
Atalanta BC and Valencia are among the clubs to be linked with the 20-year-old, but Ipswich appear to have won the race, with an announcement regarding a move to Portman Road expected to arrive in the near future.
According to Tuttomercatoweb, Man United made a last-ditch attempt to sign the Paraguay international, with the Red Devils looking at potential replacements for Alejandro Garnacho, who is being heavily linked with Napoli and Chelsea.
However, the 20-time English champions were too late, with a move to Ipswich already being agreed for a player who has scored five goals and registered six assists in 57 appearances for Brighton in all competitions.
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Man United 'failed with last-minute Enciso move'
Journalist Christian Martin went into further detail in a conversation with Paraguay's Versus, claiming that Enciso rejected Man United as he wants to be considered first choice at this stage of his career.
"What I can tell you is that at the last minute of yesterday's day, a call from Manchester United arrived," said Martin.
"Manchester United wanted Julio to be potentially the replacement in case Garnacho goes to Napoli or another club, there are several interested, Garnacho has had a problem with Amorim.
"The situation is not the same in the club that he grew up, Garnacho has been playing for many years as a youth player and immediately came the call from the United board to attempt Julio.
"The answer of the Paraguayan, thank you but no thank you, I want to play. Julio turns 21 tomorrow, we are already talking about a Paraguayan boy on the other side of the world in the most competitive league that is fighting for his future and really say no to Borussia Dortmund, say no to Manchester United, say no to Valencia, prioritise that, playing, he wants to play from the start."
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Will Garnacho leave Man United in this transfer window?
The rumours surrounding Garnacho's future continue to gather pace, and it is a genuine possibility that the Argentina international will leave Old Trafford before the end of the January transfer window.
Napoli have allegedly already had a bid rejected but are considering returning with a new one amid claims that Man United will let him leave for a fee in the region of £55m.
Chelsea are also being linked with Garnacho, with the Blues said to be considering making an offer for the 20-year-old, who has scored eight times and registered five assists in 32 appearances for Man United this season.
The Red Devils are said to be open to selling Garnacho for financial reasons, as his departure would be counted as pure profit under the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability rules.
Matt Law
