Article body analysed
By JUSTIN FECK Published: 21: 27 AEDT, 17 January 2026 | Updated: 23: 48 AEDT, 17 January 2026 3 View comments Chelsea icon John Mikel Obi has weighed in the ongoing turmoil at Manchester United, and who they need to sign to replace Casemiro. The midfielder, who controversially switched from United to Chelsea despite signing a contract to play for the Red Devils, thinks that a new midfielder is a priority for United. 'I think they do need a midfielder, I think they are talking about Carlos Baleba, the guy from Brighton. Young player, I think he is fantastic, really good player. I think it will help Manchester United in terms of being that player they need, that we have in Caicedo for Chelsea. 'I think they will need that sort of player because, trust me, Casemiro, I respect him, fantastic player. He's a legend of the game. But sometimes, when your legs are gone, it's gone. This is the Premier League. You can't hide it. And you get found out in the Premier League very easily. 'So for me, I respect Casemiro, but I think Manchester United do need another holding player. ' Since Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos completed their partial takeover in early 2024, they have overseen the sackings of Erik ten Hag and more recently Ruben Amorim as well as financial strife behind the scenes resulting in redundancies. John Obi Mikel being presented as a Manchester United player before switching to Chelsea in a controversial move However despite spending over £200m in transfers, Mikel still believes that there needs to be more change to get the team back to winning ways. 'Oooh I think they probably have to switch (laughs) the whole team basically. I just think the players at the football club, at some point you have to look at the players and not always the manager. 'You have to look at the players and look at every individual - who's the right, the player for this football club? Are they capable enough to represent Manchester United. Or do they need to. .. they're in the rebuilding process as well, which is good for the club. 'They've brought in a couple of new players, Mbeumo, Cunha - I think these are great players. But I think they need a few more, in the defence, they need to bring in loads of different defenders, I think if they want to start competing to win the league. ' Mikel believes that the club needs another radical overhaul of players with a replacement for Casemiro a priority After all the upheaval at the club, Mikel thinks that a European spot for next year is a possibility, although a tough ask given the current state of affairs. 'I don't think they'll make the top four. I think if they get into Europe (that'll be a good result), I reckon they should finish around 8th, 9th, 10th place, because of the inconsistency at the football club. ' Fans can follow in John Obi Mikel’s footsteps and #Transferto Pixel this January by trading in their old phone - and claim up to an extra £300. For more details, visit Google Store: Pixel 10 Smartphones
Share what you think
The comments below have not been moderated.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of Mail Online.
By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your Mail Online comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to Mail Online as usual. Do you want to automatically post your Mail Online comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to Mail Online as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on Mail Online. To do this we will link your Mail Online account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.