Manchester United are tracking Como ace Nico Paz as a potential 2027 replacement for captain Bruno Fernandes, whose future at Old Trafford remains uncertain.

Fernandes seemed to take a potshot at manager Michael Carrick for his tactics during the 4-1 Champions League loss at the hands of Paz’s Como in midweek, fuelling speculation that contract talks between the Portugal star and United may yet prove unsuccessful.

Paz, meanwhile, has seen his profile explode during his time with the Serie A club, and his performance against the Red Devils only helped to confirm his readiness for a big move.

Several clubs have been linked with the 22-year-old Argentine playmaker, including Chelsea and Arsenal, yet according to transfer insider Nicolo Schira, United are also tracking the player.

Como’s stance is clear: they want to keep their star man.

Real Madrid, though, could have a role to play in proceedings. They have an €80 million buy-back clause installed in Paz’s contract that they can trigger.

Paz ‘played like Maradona’ again Man Utd

Paz’s performance against Man Utd was hailed by Roberto Martinez, who was UEFA’s technical observer for the game.

“He scored two goals and provided an assist for the first three. That's what a star does. It was like watching Maradona, seeing that kind of player who carries the team on his back,” he explained.

“I love Nico's precision. He's a wonderful footballer, with great balance, who likes to have the ball under control. You could see what he was going to do. You could see the space he had. The execution was perfect.”

Why Madrid are not in total control of the situation

Although Madrid’s buy-back clause would appear to leave them in control of Paz’s future, signing the player will not be so straightforward.

To understand the situation, Paz’s complicated transfer history needs studied.

Como signed him in 2024 for just €6m, but Los Blancos maintained a buy-back option worth €9m as well as a sell-on clause of 50%. Two years on, Como spent a further €60m to secure the playmaker’s full rights, although Real Madrid retain a buy-back option for €80m, which is why Jose Mourinho’s side are still considered in the strongest position to sign him.

But there’s a problem with going back to Madrid for Nico Paz – and it’s a big one: how does he fit into the team?

He’s made his name as a playmaker at Como, featuring in the No.10 role for the vast majority of his appearances.

Go to Real Madrid, and suddenly he is facing competition with Jude Bellingham, a player who is still approaching the peak of his powers and already one of the best in the world in that role.

So could he play elsewhere? His experience in other areas is limited and largely comes from his youth days back in Spain. He did score seven times in 15 games as a centre-forward for the Castilla side, but he’s not seriously going to trouble Kylian Mbappe in that spot, while signing him to play on the right following the club’s record signing of Yan Diomande from RB Leipzig in the summer would be an illogical move.

The likeliest way Paz could fit at Madrid would be shifting Bellingham back into a deeper role, but that’s going to be a hard sell to the Englishman, who is currently thriving.

Man Utd have more scope to find Nico Paz space in their squad, especially as increasing focus falls upon Bruno Fernandes amid his disappointing run of form.

As the player approaches his peak years, he will want regular first team football, which is something that the Red Devils can offer him that Real Madrid simply cannot.