Frenkie De Jong has told Barcelona he does not want to leave the club, per reports, and his reluctance to leave the Nou Camp could play a huge part in Manchester United’s transfer plans this summer. The club are desperately searching for a midfielder in the upcoming transfer window and many players have been touted with a move to Old Trafford. And if De Jong is off the table, United still have some exciting alternative options. Express Sport takes a look at five of them.
Ruben Neves
Neves has been linked to United for a while, even back in his old Porto days. He moved to Wolves in 2017 and hasn’t looked back since, winning the Championship in his first season, helping to secure the Midlands club as a Premier League regular and offering real composure in the midfield.
The Portugal international has long been touted with a move away from Molineux such is his quality, with manager Bruno Lage unsure if he will stay at the club. “I don’t know what they (the fans) sing, but if you tell me I’ll sing the same thing. I want what’s best for Ruben and the club and if Ruben stays I will be happy,” he said. It might well be that a trip up the M6 beckons for Neves.
Youri Tielemans
Tielemans is out of contract next summer, meaning Leicester are vulnerable to bids for the player this summer. The Belgian has been Leicester’s central midfield playmaker throughout the entire duration of his career at the King Power Stadium.
And his calming, on-the-ball presence could be exactly what the Red Devils need under the forward-thinking Ten Hag.
Yves Bissouma
Bissouma has been linked with teams such as Liverpool, Tottenham and Aston Villa recently, with Brighton set for a struggle to keep their main midfielder.
But with Ten Hag in need of midfield replacements for Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Jesse Lingard, Bissouma could be offered consistent game-time to edge ahead of their opponents for his signature. The midfielder has one goal and two assists from holding midfield so far this season.
Wilfried Ndidi
Ndidi is the glue that allows Tielemans to break forward at Leicester – and he could complement Bruno Fernandes in a similar role at United.
Boasting international, European and Premier League experience, Ndidi would be the perfect fit to allow attackers such as Fernandes, Anthony Elanga and Jadon Sancho to excel. The price tag may be an issue, but he would be a high-quality alternative to De Jong.
Carlos Soler
The Spaniard is more of an attacking option than the aforementioned players but could act as a superb Plan B to De Jong due to his calmness and quality on the ball.
It will be hard for United to tempt some players to Manchester this summer due to the fact they’re not in the Champions League. But with Valencia also failing to qualify, and with Soler out of contract next summer, he could be a cut-price bargain.
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