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Man Utd fail to complete loan for sensation who went from being pizza boy to World Cup

Monaco have received interest from several clubs for France national team ace Youssouf Fofana and the energetic midfielder's journey from pizza delivery boy to World Cup finalist has not been easy

[Man Utd had a late loan offer for Youssouf Fofana rejected by Monaco ]

Man Utd had a late loan offer for Youssouf Fofana rejected by Monaco (Image: DeFodi Images via Getty Images)

Manchester United have reportedly failed to sign Monaco star Youssouf Fofana on loan.

Erik ten Hag is keen to add a new midfielder to his squad before the end of the summer transfer window. Monaco's Fofana has been one of several names linked with the Red Devils, having impressed in Ligue 1 in recent seasons.

But transfer guru Fabrizio Romano reports that Monaco have rejected loan moves from two big clubs for the French international, one of them being United.

United are said to have made their approach on Thursday with just one day left until the end of the window. However, the Premier League giants were only interested in taking the 24-year-old on loan with an option to buy, which did not suit Monacos plans.

READ MORE:Man Utd put clause into Sergio Reguilon loan which could lead to Spurs return in January

The French side are only interested in selling the player, leading them to reject a similar offer from Champions League finalists Inter Milan. It comes after Fofana was linked with Premier League sides West Ham and Nottingham Forest in early August.

Fofanas journey in football has been quite spectacular. His emergence at Monaco has drawn comparisons to Aurelien Tchouameni, though he has largely flown under the radar in the wake of his former club-mate's high-profile move from Monaco to Real Madrid last summer.

Do you think Man Utd have had a good summer in terms of signings? Let us know in the comments section.

[Monaco would only be open to a sale of Youssouf Fofana]

Monaco would only be open to a sale of Youssouf Fofana(Image: Getty Images)

Fofana is of Malian descent but was born and raised in Paris. As a youngster he joined the France's famed Clairefontaine national academy, which has produced stars such as Thierry Henry, Nicolas Anelka and Kylian Mbappe, but he was released just after his 14th birthday.

It would be four years before he joined another academy, during which time he returned to full-time studying and worked as a pizza delivery boy, all while playing amateur football on the side.

[Youssouf Fofana came on against Argentina in the World Cup final]

Youssouf Fofana came on against Argentina in the World Cup final(Image: Getty Images)

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The tough-tackling, box-to-box midfielder eventually signed for Strasbourg in 2017 and made his professional debut for the club a year later, at the age of 19.

A year-and-a-half later, Monaco came calling and snapped him up for 12m. He's since made over 140 appearances for the club.

[pizza shop]

Fofana used to work as a pizza delivery boy(Image: Getty Images)

Fofana made his France debut just before the 2022 World Cup. At the tournament he featured in six of France's seven matches, starting two of them; their 1-0 defeat to Tunisia in the group stage and their 2-0 win over Morocco in the semi-final.

He also came on during extra time in the final against Argentina.

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