According to Fabrizio Romano, Manchester United is preparing to offload defender Eric Bailly this summer.

Bailly joined Old Trafford in 2016 from Villarreal and has been listed there since. The center-back has played 113 times for the Red Devils since then, earning £31.2 million in pay during his seven-year spell.

The summer saw the Ivory Coast international sent on loan to Marseille of Ligue 1, where he has made 19 appearances across all competitions. The 29-year-old has missed portions of the season due to an injury and a ban; it appears that a return to Carrington is in the works this summer, but it might only be for a brief period of time.

In the last 48 hours, Romano updated his Twitter followers on Bailly’s situation. The player’s loan move will not be made permanent, according to him, and the Red Devils will be ‘available on the market’.

Be aware that Eric Bailly will not sign a permanent contract with Olympique Marseille; instead, he will go back to Manchester United.

According to reports, Bailly will be put up for sale because Man United is willing to let him go.

Erik-ten-Hag-man-united-premier-league
There might be a summer purge at Manchester United.

Selling Bailly with a year left on his Old Trafford contract makes sense for everyone since it appears that Erik ten Hag doesn’t have long-term ambitions for the defender.

Transfermarkt’s estimate of the center back has fallen from a career high of €35 million in 2018 to just €8 million, indicating that he may be past his peak. His loan in France hasn’t exactly been a success either, as he has started just four Ligue 1 games.

Ten Hag has authorized potential deals for Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof, so Bailly might not be the only defender to leave. That would leave United with few options at center back, therefore Old Trafford administrators will likely need to add a new defender. Axel Disasi of AS Monaco is one player who has been highly linked with a transfer.

The 25-year-old might cost £40 million and the Red Devils are reportedly in the lead to sign him ahead of Chelsea and Manchester City. If the French international does that, long-serving players Bailly, Maguire, and Lindelof may all leave the team and be replaced by players like Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez in the 2023–24 season.