England defeated the Netherlands 2-1 in the European Championships semi-final to secure their place in back-to-back finals in the competition.
Goals from Harry Kane and Ollie Watkins were enough for the Three Lions after Xavi Simons had fired the Dutch ahead during the opening exchanges.
Manchester United star Kobbie Mainoo was outstanding in the middle of the park for Gareth Southgate’s side and became the youngest player to play in a semi-final of a major tournament for England in the process.
After Watkins’ last-gasp strike, Ronald Koeman, in a desperate attempt to try and take the game to extra-time, threw on United target Joshua Zirkzee for the final few seconds.
Zirkzee wasn’t able to do much given his limited time but after the full-time whistle, he was seen bumping into Mainoo.
The pair embraced at the end of the game with hopeful United fans labeling it as Mainoo ‘welcoming’ the striker to Old Trafford.
As reported by The Sun, Mainoo stopped for a quick chat with the Bologna man who is widely expected to be linking up with him in Manchester ahead of the new season.
Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano also shared the photo of the duo, captioning it with “soon”.
Kobbie Mainoo & Joshua Zirkzee. 🔜🔴 pic.twitter.com/NGPJERNbRJ
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 10, 2024
The Peoples Person have recently relayed that a deal for the 23-year-old is close to completion and the striker will join Erik ten Hag’s troops after the European Championships.
Zirkzee will provide competition to Rasmus Hojlund who had to carry the burden of being United’s only striking option last season.
Despite not featuring for his national side in the Euros as much as he would have liked, Zirkzee enjoyed a fine season at club level.
The Dutchman hit double figures to help secure an excellent fifth place finish for Bologna, which meant plenty of suitors were interested in his signature.
United look set to win the race for the talented striker and a reunion with Mainoo is expected at Carrington when the pair return from their holidays.
Want to be the first to hear breaking Man United news? For carefully selected, crucial updates, join our WhatsApp channel: https://bit.ly/United-Breaking-News.
