It’s been an indifferent season so far for Erik ten Hag’s side after suffering two defeats in their opening three games, though the Dutchman will hope Manchester United confidence has been restored after scoring 10 unanswered goals in their last two games, including the 7-0 thumping of League One Barnsley in the Carabao Cup.
It will be hoped that is a sign of things to come and better results continue to follow as Ten Hag’s five summer signings continue to bed into life at Old Trafford.
However, it is clear the Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Dan Ashworth revolution at United is still in its embryonic phase, with plans for another big overhaul of players already being put into place ahead of the 2025 transfer windows.
One name strongly linked in recent days is Croatian star Baturina, who has been earning rave reviews with Dinamo Zagreb in recent times. Mentioned as a potential target for Real Madrid, the midfielder has caught the eye with five assists from just eight appearances already this season.
Now according to Sky Deutschland journalist Patrick Berger, United have ‘positioned themselves’ on to the front row in the race to sign the 21-year-old talent.
Writing on X, Berger claims United are big admirers of a player, who was on the radar of Atletico Madrid, Fiorentina, and AS Roma over the summer, and the Red Devils have now been given hope of a deal by claiming the “strong No 10” is ready to “take the next step” in summer 2025.
has produced stars like Luka Modric, Mateo Kovacic, and Josko Gvardiol.
He is also from a footballing family as his dad is former Croatia international Mate Baturina and his older brother, Roko, is currently playing for Malaga.
The 21-year-old made his senior debut in May 2021 and has since made another 127 appearances, registering 16 goals and 32 assists in the process.
He also impressed for Croatia at the European Under-21 Championship in 2023 and has now won four caps at senior level.
Standing at 5ft 8in, Baturina is a diminutive attacking midfielder that has a low centre of gravity, which allows him to twist and turn out of tight spaces.
His vision, technical ability and dribbling skills have earned him comparisons to Modric, who left Zagreb for Tottenham and has since enjoyed a trophy-laden career at Real Madrid.
“When you compare the two at the same age, you could say that Baturina is further in his development at the same age than Modric,” Croatian journalist Dragan Stojanovic said via
“There is no doubt that he is very developed for his age. His strengths are his playmaking abilities, he always has an idea of what to do with the ball next, and reads the game very well.”
He added: “There are almost no weaknesses. Perhaps his only soft spot is his consistency. But I have no doubt that he will be the new Modric.”