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Man Utd tried to sign Zlatan Ibrahimovic protege
Carlo Garganese
- Updated: 12 Oct 2025 06:05 CDT
- 4 min read
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Manchester United tried to sign Italian sensation Francesco Camarda when Dan Ashworth was the club's sporting director but he was persuaded to stay at Milan by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
That is according to Fabrizio Romano, who reports on his Italian YouTube channel, that Camarda was a key target for United under Ashworth.
Current ETV
Francesco Camarda
F (C)
Lecce
Francesco Camarda
F (C)
Lecce
ETV Range
€13.9M - €17M
Camarda has long been tipped for greatness after scoring 483 goals in 87 games at youth level by the age of 15.
At the time of the approach, Camarda was playing for Milan Futuro in Serie C.
But Romano says that Milan strategic advisor Ibrahimovic - formerly a Man Utd striker - convinced the teenager that he was a key part of the club's future.
Man Utd wanted Camarda
This was despite a masive offer being made by United to bring him to Old Trafford.
Zlatan has become something of a father figure to Camarda, with the Italian seen as his protege.
Last month a photo went viral of a 11-year-old Camarda sending Zlatan a photo of them together and a message on Instagram introducing himself and describing it as a "dream come true" to meet him.
“I care a lot about Camarda," Zlatan said this week.
" I took a photo with him when he was a kid, I didn’t know who he was. I went to Vismare to give the boys some motivation. It was 2019, but I saw his message a year ago. Not out of arrogance, but because I’m not very active on social media.
“He tagged me once, and then I saw it. We were playing together, and I told him he could tell me he’d sent me a message. I waited for his first goal in Serie A to post that message. I hoped he’d do it with Milan.
“He’s on loan now, he’ll be back next year, he has to make his own way. I’m happy for him, very happy. Italian football is missing a No.9 like him.”
The 17-year-old Camarda hit the headlines a fortnight ago after he scored his first ever Serie A goal on loan at Lecce, securing a 2-2 draw against Bologna with a 94th minute headed equaliser.
In the process, Camarda became the fifth youngest goalscorer in Serie A in the last decade.
He also scored his first goal for Italy Under-21s on Friday with a Panenka penalty in the 4-0 win over Sweden.
The striker has been prolific at youth level and he led Italy Under-17s to win the European Championship in 2024, scoring four goals and being named Player of the Tournament.
He made his senior debut for AC Milan at the age of 15 in 2023, becoming the youngest Serie A player of all time.
He also made his Champions League debut at the age of 16 in a match against Club Brugge, becoming the youngest Italian ever in the competition and the seventh youngest overall. He had a goal disallowed just minutes after coming on which denied him another record.
This summer he was loaned out to Lecce with an option to buy for €3 million, but Milan possess a buyback option for €3.8m and the striker is very much seen as the future of Milan.
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