Everton and Leeds United have reportedly been dealt with a major blow in their pursuit of Manchester United starlet James Garner.

According to Jacque Talbot, Manchester United have pulled the plug on James Garner’s potential exit from Old Trafford. The Premier League giants have no intention to offload their revered prospect ahead of the new season, amid interest from Leeds United and Everton.

Both Everton and Leeds, who were involved in the relegation scrap this past season, had aspired to sign the youngster in the coming summer. But it appears Manchester United are not going to ship to another club, even on a permanent deal.

A defensive midfielder by trade, Garner has been a member of the Manchester United youth academy since 2009. He is regarded as one of the most talented players to come out of the youth setup in recent years, with the 21-year-old particularly enjoying a rapid rise to prominence in the past couple of seasons.

This past season, Garner was involved in the Nottingham Forest story as they secured Premier League promotion. He made a total of almost 50 competitive appearances for the club, scoring four goals while mustering ten assists. His contributions in the middle of the park played a key role in helping Nottingham Forest seal promotion.

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The 21-year-old’s performances had not gone unnoticed, with Leeds United and Everton expressing the desire to sign the midfielder ahead of the new season.

With several question marks over the future of Kalvin Phillips, especially amid interest from Manchester City, Garner could have an excellent long-term replacement for the Englishman. His ability in possession, coupled with his productivity might have made him the ideal cog in Leeds’s second line of press.

Frank Lampard, too, was interested in Garner as he likes technically oriented midfielders that can control the tempo of the game. In fact, the young midfielder’s stye of play is reminiscent of Lampard himself and he could have played a key role for Everton in the coming season.

But it appears Manchester United’s new coach Erik ten Hag has plans for him in the new season. With Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic leaving the club, Garner may have a real opportunity to make his much-awaited breakthrough in the Manchester United first-team, especially if he can impress ten Hag during pre-season.

Also Read: Manchester United Season Review: What went wrong for the Red Devils in the 2021/22 season?

The Red Devils, though, remain highly reliant on the market and are reportedly closing in on the capture of Barcelona superstar Frenkie de Jong, who has a good rapport with the new manager.

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