Man Utd may already have £6m solution if they suffer £71m Frenkie de Jong transfer misery

Manchester United look increasingly likely to miss out on Frenkie de Jong, the player Erik ten Hag viewed as being the glue for his new-look midfield. The Dutch tactician sees the Barcelona midfielder as the ideal ball-player and ball-carrier but he may have a solution already at United if De Jong doesn’t join.

A £71million agreement was reached with Barcelona for De Jong earlier in the window but the player himself does not want to leave the Catalan giants. Even if the financially-struggling La Liga giants force De Jong out against his will, Chelsea appear a more likely destination than United, whose pursuit has spanned over three months.

Lazio’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic is alternative target for United, though the Red Devils have already missed out on Fabian Ruiz who is headed to Paris Saint-Germain. Youri Tielemans, Ruben Neves and Konrad Laimer are other players linked. Adrien Rabiot seems set to join, but not as a back-up to De Jong and instead more as an addition to a holding midfielder.

Yet in James Garner, who thrived for Premier League new boys Nottingham Forest in the Championship last term, they may have a player who can help remedy their midfield woes. The highly-promising 21-year-old – valued at £6million by Transfermarkt – was excellent at Forest last season.

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Bruno Fernandes even named him as the academy prospect he’s most keen to play with in a Twitter Q&A in April while Steve Cooper is still keen to reunite with him at Forest permanently. Particularly because Garner was only an unused substitute in United’s 2-1 opening-weekend loss to Brighton last Sunday.

Instead, on Ten Hag’s Premier League debut, Fred acted as the No 6 with Scott McTominay and Fernandes ahead of him. It didn’t work whatsoever with Fernandes ineffective and Fred and McTominay both overrun.

Fred, especially, struggled as the deepest-lying midfielder, regularly giving away possession. But Garner is a player who might better suit Ten Hag’s demands as a No 6 given his high-level technical ability.

The England under-21 international showed himself in his season at Forest as not only neat and tidy on the ball but also adept in his defending, at breaking up play and winning back the ball. He was also deployed in a more advanced position and weighed in with 10 assists as well as four goals in 48 appearances.

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When playing as a defensive midfielder at Forest, Garner often had a partner next to him but in the right midfield trio under Ten Hag – perhaps with Fred as one of the No 8s – he would still have assistance. He is at least surely deserving of a chance if McTominay and Fred continue to perform as they did against Brighton.

Ten Hag is open to giving young players minutes and said this summer: “If players have the right ability and attitude, they will get their chance, regardless of their age or reputation.” And Garner certainly seems to have the attitude as well as the ability.

While he lacks experience in the Premier League, Garner plays with the kind of maturity and control that may make him exactly the kind of presence the United midfield lacks. De Jong may not become a Manchester United player this summer but Ten Hag should not forget about Garner, who could just be a hidden gem.

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