Manchester United have entered the race to sign highly rated Ecuadorian defensive midfielder Ederson Castillo from LDU Quito, according to Ekrem Konur.
Ecuador has rapidly emerged as the latest breeding ground for rising stars in South America, with multiple standout youngsters completing moves to major European clubs in recent months.
Having already signed Kendry Paez from Independiente del Valle in 2023, Chelsea have also reportedly reached an agreement in principle to sign Deinner Ordonez, who is regarded as one of South America’s best centre-back prospects.
Earlier this month, Arsenal unveiled the signings of Edwin and Holger Quintero after reaching an agreement with del Valle to bring in the 16-year-old twins, with more clubs looking to unearth talent from the country.
United are not left out and are now looking to unearth the next Ecuadorian gem, as Ekrem Konur claims that the Red Devils have joined the race to sign Castillo as a future midfield option.
Castillo remains primarily part of Liga de Quito’s youth setup. However, he trains consistently with the senior squad and is widely viewed as the next breakout prospect, following the Quintero twins, who moved to Arsenal.
The Red Devils will now hope to make their interest by accelerating efforts to sign him, as Konur claims that the 17-year-old is also attracting interest from Anderlecht, Atlético Madrid and Bayern Munich.
Prospect
For United, pursuing Castillo aligns perfectly with the club’s redesigned recruitment model under their updated football hierarchy. The Red Devils are intent on shifting away from spending inflated sums on already established names, instead concentrating on spotting teenagers with significant long-term potential.
Through this revamped approach, United have already brought in several promising youngsters — Harley Emsden-James, Enzo Kana-Biyik, and Diego Leon — complementing an academy that was bolstered last season with the arrivals of Ayden Heaven and Chido Obi-Martin.
The club additionally hold a pre-contract agreement with Fortaleza regarding Colombia U17 skipper Cristian Orozco, who is set to join once he turns 18 in July 2026, and they remain eager to secure further highly rated talents.
For Castillo, the opportunity to join one of Europe’s biggest clubs to develop and potentially become a key part of their team in the future would be an opportunity he would consider.
However, United will need to act as swiftly as their Premier League counterparts to sign the youngster amid interest from other big European clubs.
