{
  "id": 5729525,
  "title": "Everton almost landed “fantastic” Man United wonderkid for a meagre £2m",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/05/everton-almost-landed-fantastic-man-united-wonderkid-for-a-meagre-2m",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-05T06:05:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/everton-almost-landed-fantastic-man-060500976.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On deadline day, Manchester United came tantalizingly close to signing Joshua Zirkzee for a meager £2m. The Dutchman, a 20-time English league champion, was initially targeted by Everton after medical issues arose for Folarin Balogun. However, United's interest waned with just minutes before the transfer deadline, leaving Everton desperate for an attacking solution. That prompted the Toffees to explore a potential move for another United product, Ethan Wheatley. The 20-year-old, a former Old Trafford fan favorite, had already made his first-team debut for his parent club and had been capped four times under Erik ten Hag and Ruud van Nistelrooy. With financial priorities elsewhere, Everton ultimately missed out on Wheatley, who has since joined Lincoln City on a season-long loan and may be his final opportunity to impress his parent club.",
  "summary": "1 On deadline day, Manchester United came close to sending Joshua Zirkzee out on loan to Sunday’s opponents.Everton, having run into trouble with Folarin Balogun’s medical, offered the Red Devils ...",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Punch",
        "title": "Babayaro almost made me dump United for Chelsea – Comedian Whale Mouth",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/05/babayaro-almost-made-me-dump-united-for-chelsea-comedian-whale-mouth",
        "published": "2026-09-05T01:02:12.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}