Dorgeles Nene – Is Manchester United target good enough for the Premier League?

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€8m valuation 

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Given their stature and fanbase around the world, Manchester United are linked to countless players on a weekly basis. There is little substance to the majority of those names but United’s interest in Dorgeles Nene appears legitimate. It’s understood that United recruitment staff has scouted the RB Salzburg attacker extensively this season.

Ruben Amroim has scrutinized his squad across the last two months with major reconstruction inevitable across the next few transfer windows. Amorim has firmly stood by his principals and exclusively deployed his preferred 3-4-2-1 formation despite inheriting that a squad that isn’t perfectly suited to his demands. Whether United can add new signings in January firmly depends on offloading unwanted players but they could also act upon their interest in the summer window.

Who is Dorgeles Nene?

The 23-year-old is a versatile attacker, who started his career playing predominantly as a striker but he’s been used mainly as a winger this season. Salzburg are renowned for identifying future gems and they signed Nene in 2021 from Guidars FC in his homeland Mali – interestingly United signed Sékou Koné from the same club this summer. Christopher Vivell has gained an important role at United since the departure of Dan Ashworth and he previously worked in senior recruitment roles at both RB Leipzig and RB Salzburg with his influence growing at Old Trafford.

The standout skills from Nene’s game are his speed, creativity and trickery. The Salzburg star only broke into the first-team this season at the Austrian club after several loan spells. Nene has scored six goals and provided six assists in 27 appearances this season but has notably failed to provide a single goal contribution during Salzburg’s woeful Champions League campaign. While undoubtedly a significant talent, Nene remains incredibly raw and there are legitimate doubts over his readiness for Premier League football.

Dorian Schuster, Transfermarkt’s Austrian football expert, explains: “Nene is renowned for his speed and his technique. He was usually used as a striker, but Pep Lijnders chose to play him as a winger on either side. However, he isn’t even an outstanding player for Salzburg yet and far from the level required in the Premier League. So I can’t imagine a move happening, let alone to Manchester United.”

How much is Dorgeles Nene worth?

Nene’s market value doubled across 2024 from €4m to his current valuation of €8m. Salzburg, however, are notorious for extracting big fees for their younger talents and any offer would need to exceed his current valuation to bring them to the negotiating table. Nene is currently the 8th most valuable player in the Austrian Bundesliga and the 7th most valuable at Salzburg. A deal in the summer appears more likely to allow Nene to develop further and allow United time to assess whether he’s good enough for a major European club.