Carlos Baleba struggling after failed Man Utd transfer, reveals Brighton boss | Football

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has admitted Carlos Baleba is struggling after failing to secure a summer transfer to Manchester United.

Baleba started Brighton’s opening three matches of the new Premier League season after recovering from a knee injury but was dropped from the starting XI against Bournemouth on Saturday.

The midfielder, who also had a disappointing international break with Cameroon as they were beaten by Cape Verde, started among the subs, brought on for the final 24 minutes when he replaced James Milner.

The Seagulls were trailing at the Vitality Stadium at that point in the game with Antoine Semenyo’s penalty on the hour mark enough to seal the victory for the hosts.

Baleba emerged as United’s top midfield target in August but they shelved their interest due to Brighton’ huge valuation, thought to be in excess of £100million. Throughout the short-lived transfer saga, Hurzeler remained ‘100 per cent confident’ his midfielder was going nowhere.

But speaking after the defeat at Bournemouth, Hurzeler admitted Baleba has been ‘affected by the noise’, adding ‘sometimes young players don’t always have the face we want to see’.

 ‘I think it’s normal for a young player when the media creates the noise around him,’ Hurzeler said.

‘It’s not easy for this player to handle it. Therefore we need to give him the time and support so he comes back to his best performance.

‘But he’s a young player and I think that’s something we have to accept, that young players don’t always have the face we want to see.

‘It’s our responsibility to help them in the right moments.’

Asked if the speculation surrounding United’s interest has affected Baleba, Hurzeler added: ‘I think everyone gets affected, especially when you are that young and you hear these kinds of things, no matter if they are wrong or right.

‘But it’s just noise we don’t need.’

United did explore alternative signings after ending their Baleba pursuit but ended their summer spending without making any additions in midfield.

Ruben Amorim’s side will reportedly revisit a move for the 21-year-old next summer.

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