Erik ten Hag’s influence over recruitment at Manchester United was expected to greatly decrease under INEOS. However, that appears not to be the case this summer.
In his first two summers at Old Trafford, the former Ajax manager came under the scanner for mostly focusing on Dutch talents for his project at United. After INEOS put in place a new football structure, many thought that United would not spend all their summer in the Netherlands this time.
However, the arrival of Ruud van Nistelrooy and René Hake, as well as the club’s attempts to sign Joshua Zirkzee and Matthijs de Ligt suggest Ten Hag still retains a big say in United’s squad-building plans.
Now, the Red Devils have been linked with another Dutchman, Xavi Simons. The Peoples Person recently relayed a report claiming United have made an offer to sign Simons from Paris Saint-Germain.
Simons, who spent the last season on loan at RB Leipzig, has returned to Paris Saint-Germain after a prolific stint in Germany. In the same country, he also impressed many with his performances in the Euros this summer.
According to Fabrizio Romano (via Daily Briefing), Simons has decided to depart PSG once again and is attracting strong interest from Leipzig as well as Bayern Munich.
The transfer expert also confirmed that United hold an interest in the 21-year-old attacking midfielder and the Premier League giants even ‘asked for information’ to understand his situation.
However, Romano, in his report, added that United are not in the pole position to sign Simons and find themselves behind the two Bundesliga clubs, who have been trying to lure the midfielder since April.
He wrote: “These two clubs are pushing, and their advantage is that they have been pushing for a long time, for the last few months.”
Interestingly, Bayern are also eyeing a deal for Desire Doue, another playmaker who reportedly features on United’s transfer wish list. It is understood that the Bavarian outfit have already made a bid for the Stade Rennais talent.
Unless Vincent Kompany is keen on adding two attacking midfielders, who are likely to fight for the same position in his squad, their move for Doue suggests Bayern are not very confident of getting a deal over the line for Simons.
Accordingly, this situation might open doors for United to take advantage in the race for Simons.
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