Erik ten Hag may get his Man Utd wish after all without having to spend a penny
Ten Hag insists Man Utd have plenty to play for after European exit
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag may get his wish of working with a player of the ilk of Frenkie de Jong as young Red Devils star Kobbie Mainoo could offer the same skillset as the Barcelona midfielder. Ten Hag has endured a dismal second season at Old Trafford and saw his team crash out of the Champions League on Tuesday night as they lost to Bayern Munich.
United chased midfielder De Jong after Ten Hag was appointed manager in the summer of 2022 and reportedly had an £86million bid turned down by the Catalan giants. The Red Devils ultimately missed out on his signature as the player opted to stay at the Nou Camp, with Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro moving to Manchester instead.
Ten Hag appeared desperate to work with De Jong as his club spent months attempting to thrash out a deal to prise the 26-year-old away from La Liga. The duo had worked together at Ajax for two years, with the player starring as the Dutch side reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2019.
According to the Independent, there are now suggestions that Mainoo has a lot of what Ten Hag wanted in De Jong. But the academy graduate is still only 18 years old and is a long way off his prime.
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Mainoo progressed through the United youth system and has gone on to make seven first team appearances for the Red Devils. He came off the bench against Bayern with 10 minutes remaining on Tuesday night and started his side’s recent Premier League clashes with Everton and Newcastle.
“[It was about] if he is ready or not and he showed on Sunday he was ready,” Ten Hag explained as he discussed Mainoo’s full Premier League debut against the Toffees at the end of November. “His scanning. It always looks like he has time. Because of his scanning, he is running free and then scanning to see the options and then make the right decisions. He can delay, he can speed up and he makes the right decisions.”
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Ten Hag may turn to Mainoo again in the coming weeks as the fixtures build up over the festive period. The teenage sensation could be in line for another start when his side travel to Liverpool for a huge Premier League showdown on Sunday. But Mainoo will have to bide his time to play European football again.
United’s defeat to Bayern means they finished bottom of their Champions League group behind third-place Galatasaray and will not even have the opportunity to drop into the Europa League. Instead, the Turkish side will progress to the knockout round play-offs of Europe’s second tier club competition in the spring.
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