Romano drops Man Utd bomb: Wilcox has wanted €60m star ‘for years’

Manchester United director of football Jason Wilcox has been an admirer of Stuttgart midfielder Angelo Stiller ‘for years,’ according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Red Devils are in the market for reinforcements for their midfield, with Ruben Amorim demanding more energy in the engine room. Man Utd tried to land Carlos Baleba in the summer, but had to give up on him when Brighton refused to budge from their not-for-sale stance.

The Cameroon international remains their priority target, but the Old Trafford club are naturally also looking at potential alternatives. Baleba will be quite pricey as he is expected to fetch more than €100 million.

One player frequently associated with the Red Devils is Stuttgart star Angelo Stiller, who has become one of the best midfielders in the Bundesliga in recent years. He is the metronome in a team that finished runners-up in the league in 2024 and won the DFB-Pokal in the spring.

The 24-year-old is understood to be open to a new challenge in 2026, and Stuttgart will sell him at the right price. Although he has a €40 million release clause, the Swabians will be able to freely negotiate his price as they can remove his clause in exchange for a €2m compensation fee.

Romano on Stiller to Man Utd

Transfer insider Fabrizio Romano recently confirmed Man Utd’s well-documented admiration for Stiller, although he reiterated that reports of a summer approach were wide of the mark.

Nevertheless, he corroborates that Man Utd could be in the frame for the Germany international next year. In fact, Romano has now revealed that Red Devils director Jason Wilcox has been tracking Stiller ‘for years.’

The 54-year-old has only been at Old Trafford since last year, arriving as part of INEOS’ big behind-the-scenes restructuring, but it seems that Wilcox already took a liking to the midfielder during his time in charge of recruitment at Southampton.

However, according to Romano, a January transfer is highly unlikely. Instead, if Man Utd really are to start negotiating for Stiller, it will only happen in the summer, at which point he could cost up to €60m.

The market expert adds that Stiller also has other suitors and, intriguingly, mentions that Man Utd have yet to settle on a favoured target for 2026. It will not be Baleba or bust as it was in the summer.

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