Manchester United’s hopes of finishing in the WSL top three this season and qualifying for the Champions League for the first time may have just hinged on Alessia Russo staying at the club.
United, currently top of the WSL on goal difference ahead of Chelsea, were met with a world record offer for Russo from Arsenal the day before the transfer deadline.
It was rejected, but the Gunners came back on deadline day itself with an even bigger offer reaching a cool half million and far surpassing what Barcelona paid Manchester City for Keira Walsh.
Adamant they wouldn’t sell, United stood their ground and ended the negotiations, backing up what manager Marc Skinner had previously said about Russo amid Lyon interest earlier in the season: “I can make sure that the fans know we’re definitely not a selling club.”
Plenty questioned why. Russo is out of contract at the end of the season and could still leave as a free agent in the summer. Why, people asked, turn down a huge sum to potentially reinvest in the team when losing her for nothing is a possibility?
It is clear that United are backing themselves to succeed in the short-term that also then paves the way for more sustained longer-term success in the future.
From Arsenal’s perspective, getting a striker through the door for the second half of the season was important enough to throw money at a Russo bid. They had previously been interested back in 2020, when she was coming out of the US college system and wound up choosing United.
The need was obvious. The Gunners have lost both Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema to long-term injuries within the last two and a half months. Although neither was playing as a ‘number nine’ at the time they fell victim to the dreaded ACL, their loss has put a real strain on where goals might come from looking ahead. Arsenal could yet wait to potentially offer Russo a contract if her deal at United winds all the way down. But their need for reinforcement was immediate, as Jonas Eidevall had expressed throughout the window.
Even with the possibility of free agency looming and no transfer fee coming in, United still stood to lose a lot more in both the short and long-term had they cashed in now.
After a couple of near misses, getting into next season’s Champions League is crucial for United. It is the natural environment for a club of their size, but it will also raise the profile of the women’s setup, bring in substantially more revenue, open doors to potential new players…
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