Man Utd winger with 24 senior international caps joins EPL rivals – Special clause revealed
Manchester United have announced that James Scanlon has completed a permanent transfer to Arsenal.
The 19-year-old is a left winger who started his career at Derby County before moving to Carrington in 2021.
The Leicester native spent the second half of the previous campaign on loan at Swindon Town before returning to Man Utd this summer.
Arsenal sign James Scanlon from Man United
On Saturday, Arsenal and Man Utd both announced that Scanlon has joined the Gunners on a permanent basis.
“Manchester United Academy attacker James Scanlon has agreed a permanent move to Arsenal,” reads the official statement published on MUFC’s official website.
| Scanlon’s Career Stats | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| Man Utd U18 | 50 | 28 | 11 |
| Man Utd U19 (Youth League) | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| Man Utd U21 | 51 | 8 | 6 |
| Swindon Town | 9 | 2 | 0 |
The winger has thus far collected 24 caps and five goals since making his senior debut for Gibraltar, so his international exploits may have encouraged the North Londoners to bet on his talent.
Nevertheless, Arsenal announced the move via their Academy account on X (formerly Twitter), suggesting that the youngster will likely play for the club’s U21 side rather than Mikel Arteta’s senior team.
The Daily Mail’s Man Utd correspondent Nathan Salt added that the Red Devils have negotiated a 50% sell-on clause; they would collect half of the transfer fee in case of a future resale.
Arsenal return the favour for Heaven & Obi coups?
While Man Utd and Arsenal rarely do business on the market, we’ve seen young players make the switch between the two old rivals in recent years.
The two most famous examples are Chido Obi and Ayden Heaven, who were considered among the most promising talents in North London, only to join the Red Devils on free transfers.
Both players went on to make their senior debuts under Ruben Amorim during the 2024/25 campaign. But while the Danish striker has yet to find space in the first team, the English defender has already established himself as a regular feature among the seniors.
Heaven has been omnipresent in Michael Carrick’s starting lineup since the start of pre-season, and he’s expected to remain in the team until Lisandro Martinez returns to full fitness.
