Manchester United are eyeing a double raid on one club this summer, similar to how Erik ten Hag went back to his former club Ajax for Lisandro Martinez and Antony two years ago. The Dutchman has eyes on two players he worked with at the Eredivisie giants, who currently ply their trade at Bayern Munich.
Ten Hag has made no secret of wanting to work with his Ajax stars at Old Trafford, taking Martinez, Antony, Andre Onana and Sofyan Amrabat to the Red Devils over the past two years, with Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui now tipped to follow in their footsteps.
Sky Sports Germany claim that although an initial bid for De Ligt was rejected by Bayern, United are confident of pulling off a deal for the 24-year-old, while right-back Mazraoui could join if a fee can be agreed upon.
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The versatile Moroccan defender could replace Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who has attracted interest from West Ham, though Bayern are hoping to receive as much as £21million for Mazraoui. United believe that a more realistic price is in the £12-16m range.
Mazroui left Ajax the same summer as Ten Hag, but headed to Bayern and was later reunited with former team-mate De Ligt. Now the pair could be reunited with the head coach that led them to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019.
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There is still work to be done to bridge the gap in valuations for De Ligt also, after United’s £29.5m bid was turned down, with Bayern still holding out for £42m. However, Vincent Kompany’s outfit are thought to need to raise funds before bringing in new additions, potentially playing into United’s hand.
After also signing former Eredivie stars Christian Eriksen, Tyrell Malacia and Wout Weghorst, Ten Hag was forced to respond to criticism that he favours signing players out of the Netherlands, claiming that he only wants the best players regardless of where they are bought from.
“Has Casemiro played Eredivisie? Eriksen played in Eredivisie 10 years ago, then for Spurs and Inter Milan,” Ten Hag told the United We Stand fanzine. “I’ve even seen Mason Mount aligned to the Eredivisie. He was there as a young player to develop.
“For me, Mount was one of the most attractive young players in the Premier League going out of contract with one year left. It was a great opportunity for us to sign a very good 24-year-old player. That was nothing to do with the Eredivisie.
“And, if you sign players from Ajax, just look at their history. They have delivered many, many players to the top clubs in the world. It’s a long list.”
