United had negotiations with Ecuadorian club Independiente del Valle to acquire Caicedo, who was 19 years old at the time, in December 2020, but they ultimately decided against the transfer.

According to reports, they were only interested in signing him for £4.5 million in January 2021 because of the role of third party middlemen.

Caicedo, who joined Chelsea last summer for a then-record-breаking £115 million, would go on to become one of the top young midfielders in the Premier League.United are still kicking themselves for a lost chance, but they’re keeping tabs on another promising young player, Zambrano, who plays for Ecuadorian league club LDU Quito.

El Futbolero reports that Luton Town have been keeping tabs on the 19-year-old for quite some time.

United and Brighton are reportedly interested in signing him during the January transfer window, according to the publication.

With interest surfacing from both Brighton and Manchester United, Zambrano’s club Luton has opted to wait for more offers before signing him.

According to the source, United see Zambrano as “the new Caicedo” since he shares traits with the current Chelsea star and because they don’t want to lose out on another talented South American player.

Jan. is not likely to be a busy one for United.The Red Devils have allegedly checked with RB Leipzig forward Timo Werner about his availability; he was previously with Chelsea. They are looking to add a striker to Rasmus Hojlund’s roster.

Along with Thomas Muller, they have Bayern Munich’s Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting on their list of potential targets.

Stuttgart forward S. is another target for United’s attention.