{"id":18886,"date":"2026-07-19T16:00:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T16:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=18886"},"modified":"2026-07-19T16:00:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T16:00:13","slug":"nico-williams-man-united-rival-chelsea-for-athletic-club-star-man-united-news-and-transfer-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=18886","title":{"rendered":"Nico Williams: Man United rival Chelsea for Athletic Club star &#8211; Man United News And Transfer News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"penci-post-entry-inner\">\n<p>\t\t\t<i class=\"penci-post-countview-number-check\" style=\"display:none\">3<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Manchester United are preparing to make a move for Nico Williams as INEOS aim to complete their forward line with the Athletic Club winger, according to a report from Spain.<\/p>\n<h5>Spanish Superstar<\/h5>\n<p>Having played a key role in Spain\u2019s triumph at EURO 2024, scoring the opener as <em>The Red<\/em> put England to the sword, Williams is hoping to repeat the trick in the World Cup final against Argentina this evening (Sunday). Luis de la Fuente\u2019s side will face the reigning Copa America champions at the MetLife Stadium in New York, having dispatched the pre-tournament favourites, France, with ease in the semi-finals.<\/p>\n<p>It has not been as successful a tournament for Williams as the European Championship two years ago, as the 24-year-old has struggled with injury this summer. But he came off the bench in the 2-0 win over France, and will be hoping to get the starting nod tonight.<\/p>\n<p>The Pamplona native\u2019s talents remain unquestioned, however, as he possesses a potent pairing of dizzying dribbling and electric speed. He is also a dual-threat, capable of playing on both flanks, though he prefers the left-hand side for Athletic Club.<\/p>\n<p>Having come close to leaving his boyhood club after agreeing terms with FC Barcelona last summer, Williams is no longer on the radar at Camp Nou after the Blaugrana agreed a \u00a370 million deal to sign Newcastle United winger Anthony Gordon.<\/p>\n<p>This was a major blow for Manchester United as it confirmed Barcelona\u2019s decision not to trigger the \u00a326 million buy-option in Marcus Rashford\u2019s loan deal. The 28-year-old England international is now set to return to Old Trafford after finishing third with the Three Lions at the World Cup following a scintillating display last night.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"tablepress-1632-name\" class=\"tablepress-table-name tablepress-table-name-id-1632\">Marcus Rashford stats vs France<\/h2>\n<table id=\"tablepress-1632\" class=\"tablepress tablepress-id-1632\" aria-labelledby=\"tablepress-1632-name\">\n<thead>\n<tr class=\"row-1\">\n<th class=\"column-1\">Statistic<\/th>\n<th class=\"column-2\">Value<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody class=\"row-striping row-hover\">\n<tr class=\"row-2\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Goals<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-3\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Expected goals (xG)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0.51<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-4\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Assists<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-5\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Expected assists (xA)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0.07<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-6\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Big chances created<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-7\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Key passes<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-8\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Crosses (accurate)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">2 (0)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-9\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Accurate passes<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">18\/20 (90%)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-10\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Passes in opposition half (acc.)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">10\/12 (83%)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-11\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Passes in own half (acc.)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">8\/8 (100%)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-12\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Total shots<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-13\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Expected goals on target (xGOT)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0.31<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-14\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Shots on target<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">2<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-15\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Shots blocked<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-16\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Big chances missed<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-17\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Touches<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">34<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-18\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Dribbles (successful)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">3 (2)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-19\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Possession lost<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-20\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Total carrying distance<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">98 m<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-21\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Carries<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">10<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-22\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Progressive carries<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-23\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Total progression<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">75 m<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-24\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Progressive carrying distance<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">57.7 m<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-25\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Longest progressive carry<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">25.4 m<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-26\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Def. contributions<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-27\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Tackles (won)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0 (0)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-28\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Interceptions<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-29\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Clearances<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-30\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Blocked shots<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-31\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Recoveries<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-32\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Ground duels (won)<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">4 (2)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-33\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Dribbled past<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><!-- #tablepress-1632 from cache --><\/p>\n<h5>United prepared to strike<\/h5>\n<p>On the other hand, Barcelona\u2019s refusal to sign Rashford permanently has opened up the race for Manchester United to escalate their long-standing interest in Williams, having been linked with the winger as far back as 2023.<\/p>\n<p>The Red Devils are on the hunt for a new left-winger, and are willing to sacrifice Rashford to fund it. West Ham wizard Crysencio Summerville is understood to be the leading target, though Serie A side AS Roma are considered frontrunners.<\/p>\n<p>This may have led to a pivot towards Williams, however, with <em>The National<\/em> revealing United are \u201cpreparing\u201d to make a move. The Spanish outlet claims the 20-time league champions want a \u201cmore aggressive offensive identity\u201d, utilising wingers who are \u201ccapable of winning duels and changing games without always depending on the system.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Premier League rivals Chelsea are also said to be in the hunt as Williams fits the model for recruitment BluCo have installed since taking the helm at Stamford Bridge. However, the west London club agreed a record-breaking deal for Aston Villa talisman Morgan Rogers yesterday, making a big-money move for another left-sided attacker unlikely.<\/p>\n<p><em>The National<\/em> concludes by alleging United would have no problem matching Williams\u2019 wage packet at the San Mam\u00e9s Stadium, nor triggering his release clause, worth around \u00a377 million.<\/p>\n<h5>Final Thoughts<\/h5>\n<p>With a rapidly narrowing pool of interested clubs, Manchester United may end up with a free run at Williams, despite the Spaniard\u2019s potential to develop into one of Europe\u2019s most feared wingers. The 24-year-old would be an outstanding addition to Michael Carrick\u2019s forward line, freeing up Matheus Cunha to play more centrally and Patrick Dorgu to rotate with Luke Shaw at left-back.<\/p>\n<p><em>Featured image Florence Tan Jun via Getty Images<\/em><\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p>The Peoples Person has been one of the world\u2019s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thepeoplesperson.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/affiliate-christmas-campaign-25-1500x300-en-uk-min.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1160\" height=\"65\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-299864\"\/><\/p>\n<p><!-- CONTENT END 2 --><\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>3 Manchester United are preparing to make a move for Nico Williams as INEOS aim&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18887,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18886","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chelsea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18886","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18886"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18886\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/18887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18886"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18886"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18886"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}