Manchester United have signed Christian Eriksen, Lisandro Martinez and Tyrell Malacia this summer, but further reinforcements are set to be complicated by Premier League rivals Chelsea and Liverpool.
Things are beginning to heat up at Old Trafford. What threatened to be a bleak transfer window with Paul Pogba returning to Juventus and Cristiano Ronaldo threatening to follow him out of the club is now beginning to look more optimistic for Red Devils fans.
After beating Lyon at the death to acquire Netherlands left-back Malacia from Feyenoord, United signed Argentina centre-back Martinez from Ajax, ahead of Arsenal, whilst persuading Eriksen to continue his incredible comeback in Manchester following his spell with Brentford.
Results under Erik ten Hag have also been promising, albeit in pre-season, with Liverpool, Melbourne Victory and Crystal Palace all defeated in recent weeks. With Anthony Martial scoring in each of those games, United could even have an in-house solution to their Ronaldo problem.
But the Dutch tactician is known to want further reinforcements for his squad, with Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong and Ajax winger Antony two of his primary targets.
The De Jong deal has been on-off-on-off repeatedly of late, with Barcelona keen to offload one of their most saleable assists amid their ongoing financial difficulties, but the player – who previously described Barca as his dream club – holding out with the Catalan giants owing him nearly €20m in unpaid wages.
Antony won a Dutch domestic double under Ten Hag at Ajax in 2021, meanwhile, and United had been favourites to win his signature too, but competition is emerging for both players.
The Sun report that Chelsea are keen to sign De Jong, the Blues midfield needing replenished with ageing pair Jorginho and N’Golo Kante also out of contract at the end of next season.
“Murmurings of a Chelsea bid have been rumbling for a while,” they write. “With owner Todd Boehly flying to meet Barca chiefs earlier this month to discuss De Jong as well as other deals between the two clubs.”
Liverpool also hold an interest in Antony, as reported by Football Insider. The Brazil winger is rated at €33m by Football Transfers’ sophisticated in-house algorithm after a season which saw him contribute 12 goals and 10 assists in all competitions for Ajax.
Six of those goal contributions came in the Champions League, and Liverpool could offer him continued appearances in that competition having finished second to Manchester City in the Premier League last season. With United, only Europa League football is available, hence Ronaldo’s reported itchy feet.
Liverpool also have a need to reinforce their attack, despite Darwin Nunez’s €100m arrival from Benfica. Sadio Mane has left for Bayern Munich and Divock Origi for AC Milan, while Diogo Jota has suffered a recurrence of a hamstring injury in pre-season.
FootballTransfers.
