Manchester United are generally pretty savvy when it comes to their transfer dealings.
Many a youngster has failed to make the grade at Old Trafford, but the Red Devils are currently kicking themselves over the sale of one defender.
Michael Keane is a name Premier League fans will be more and more aware of as the season progresses, as the Englishman is already being linked with a move to Chelsea, who see him as a potential long-term replacement for John Terry.
Keane, of course, started his career at United, but failed to make an impact. He was then sold to Burnley for just £2.5million, which at the time seemed like good money for an unproven player.
United’s big mistake, however, was failing to include a sell-on clause in the deal, reports the Sun. It’s perfectly normal practice for clubs to put one in, just in case the player in question goes on to big things in the future, so they can benefit financially.
Chelsea will be paying a lot more than £2.5million if they do lure him to Stamford Bridge, but United won’t be getting a penny of it. That’s great news for the Blues, but Ed Woodward has come out of this red-faced.
United themselves are being linked with Keane, who could follow in the footsteps of Paul Pogba in returning to the club. Whether they had the foresight to include a buy-back clause, though, remains to be seen.
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