Manchester United this week confirmed Christopher Vivell as the club's permanent director of recruitment. The 38-year-old joined the club in the summer on a short term deal, and worked with former director of football Dan Ashworth.
Vivell previously held the technical director role at Chelsea, and was a prominent figure in the Red Bull footballing empire. As his role continues to grow within United, here are some of his transfer success stories from his career.
1. Erling Haaland
The crown jewel in Vivell’s career, Haaland was signed by the German during his time at RB Salzburg. Vivell reportedly impressed both Haaland and his father with his ability to sell a footballing project to the player.
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The Norwegian joined the club from Molde for just £5 million and was flipped to Borussia Dortmund for four times the amount after only 12 months in Austria. Haaland now of course plays for Manchester City and has developed into one of the greatest players on the planet.
2. Benjamin Sesko
Another striker success story, Sesko has reportedly been sounded out as a potential arrival for Ruben Amorim in the summer. The Slovenian was signed by Vivell for RB Salzburg at just 16, and after an impressive loan spell was promoted to the first team. He spent two full seasons in Salzburg before moving to their sister club RB Leipzig.
Sesko has netted 34 times in his one and a half seasons in Germany and is expected to move to one of Europe’s super clubs in the summer for a massive transfer fee.
3. Josko Gvardiol
Now also playing in Manchester, Gvardiol was signed from Dynamo Zagreb during Vivell's time as technical director at RB Leipzig. Like both Haaland and Sesko, Gvardiol was signed while still a teenager. City made the Croatian the most expensive defender in football history when he moved to the Etihad for £77million after three years in Germany.
4. Dayot Upamecano
Currently a starting centre back for Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich, Upamecano was one of Vivell’s first big success stories. The Frenchman was scouted by Vivell while playing for Valenciennes Under 19s, and cost just £2.2 million. After just one season at RB Salzburg and 17 appearances, he moved to RB Leipzig for £18million. Sine leaving the Red Bull system, Upamecano has become pivotal for both club and country, and has even started in a World Cup final.
5. Karim Adeyemi
Now also staring in the Bundesliga, German attacker Adeyemi can be seen as one of Vivell’s biggest successes. He took a real gamble on Adeyemi when he signed him for RB Salzburg for £8million from German third tier side SpVgg Unterhaching, a huge fee for a teenager coming from that level of football.
But after four years (two spent on loan at sister club FC Liefering) it was clear that his gamble had paid off. Adeyemi was sold for £25million to Borussia Dortmund in the 2022 summer transfer window, and has since become an established Germany international and has scored a hat trick this season in the Champions League.
