Manchester United have been told they can take inspiration from Arsenal’s transfer of Leandro Trossard and land a similar player for Erik ten Hag, in the form of Brighton’s Kaoru Mitoma. The Japanese star has lit up the Premier League in recent months under Roberto De Zerbi, prompting interest from a host of top clubs as he took the place of Trossard following his January move to the Emirates.
Mikel Arteta’s outfit pushed for the Belgian after they were gazumped to a deal for Mykhaylo Mudryk by Chelsea, but Trossard has begun north London life strongly as a centre-forward. Former United striker Louis Saha believes that the success of Trossard moving from Brighton to a top club can be repeated by a team such as United, with Mitoma.
“Yes [Mitoma can play for an elite club]. He’s a terrific player that’s very smart, mobile and agile,” Saha told Betfred. “You’ve seen Leandro Trossard show what he can do at Arsenal and I believe Mitoma is capable of doing the same for a bigger club.
“He’s shown a lot of consistency for Brighton this season and I’m very impressed with him. There’s a difference between playing for Brighton than there is playing for Manchester United, Liverpool or Arsenal, so it would be a big step for Kaoru.”
The Sun have claimed that United have previously sent scouts to watch Mitoma this season, as Champions League-level clubs begin to take an interest in the winger. Red Devils scouts turning up at Brighton games is not unregular, but they have done so with a focus on the 25-year-old.
Ten Hag will soon get a chance to watch Mitoma up close in their FA Cup semi-final next month, as he did not feature in the Seagulls’ 2-1 win at Old Trafford in August.
Saha also believes that United should be targeting Mitoma’s Brighton team-mate Evan Ferguson, who recently scored on his first international start for Ireland. “Yes [United should target Ferguson],” Saha added.
“When you’re challenging for trophies, you also need to continue to focus on bringing young players through and getting them to a level where they’re going to shine and be capable of being one of the best players in the world.
“It’s hard to find an 18-year-old at the top level that’s playing and scoring as much as Evan has been doing. You have to consider how you can incorporate the player into the team and a different system, but yes, Evan is a very clever player and he’s very mobile also. I haven’t watched enough of him to be sure about him as a player but he’s certainly shown what a threat he can be.”
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