Manchester United have completed the signing of 18-year-old defender Leny Yoro from French Ligue 1 side Lille, the clubs confirmed Thursday. United agreed on a fee of €62 million ($67.6 million), with a potential €8 million ($8.7 million) in add-ons, for the France under-21 international, sources told ESPN.
Yoro chose to join United despite interest from Real Madrid after sources revealed that the Spanish club opted against a bidding war with the Premier League side for the center-half. Sources added that Yoro informed Madrid of his decision to sign for United on Tuesday night after they failed to make a move for him.
"Signing for a club with the stature and ambition of Manchester United so early in my career is an incredible honor," Yoro said in the announcement. "Since my first conversations with the club, they set out a clear plan for how I can develop in Manchester as part of this exciting project and showed a lot of care for me and my family. I know about the history of young players at Manchester United and feel it can be the perfect place to reach my potential and achieve my ambitions, together with my new teammates. I cannot wait to get started."
Yoro will join Joshua Zirkzee, who signed from Bologna on Sunday, at Old Trafford. Both signings were facilitated by the club's new football leadership, established following Sir Jim Ratcliffe's arrival as a minority owner, along with club scouts and manager Erik ten Hag, sources said.
"Leny is one of the most exciting young defenders in world football; he possesses every attribute needed to develop into a top-class center-back," Man United's new sporting director Dan Ashworth said in a club statement. "Having had such an excellent start to his career, we are excited to support him in reaching his immense potential here at Manchester United. This club has a fantastic record of developing young players, whether homegrown or brought in from elsewhere, and giving them the required guidance, time, and patience to grow and flourish. Under Erik ten Hag and our excellent staff, we will ensure that Leny has the perfect platform to achieve the success that everyone across the club is aiming for."
Zirkzee and Yoro effectively replace forward Anthony Martial and defender Raphaël Varane, who departed the club earlier this summer. The club has not ruled out further defensive signings, sources told ESPN, with continued interest in Bayern Munich's Matthijs de Ligt and Everton's Jarrad Branthwaite. However, transfer fees remain a potential stumbling block, with ESPN reporting that United had a £50 million ($64 million) bid rejected for Branthwaite.
Yoro is regarded as one of the brightest young defensive talents in Europe, having become a first-team regular at Lille. He made his senior debut as a 16-year-old at the end of the 2021-22 season.
