Erik Ten Hag's strategy to bring on board Dutch players, particularly his former Ajax stars, to Manchester United didn't yield the expected results. With the Dutch manager sacked and 39-year-old Ruben Amorim set to take over, fans of the Premier League side are expecting a season-saving overhaul in the months to come.
Meanwhile, reports suggest that Amorim, who is currently in charge of the Portuguese side Sporting CP, has already initiated discussing his transfer market strategy with the Manchester United board. Not only has he identified players who are not going to be part of his long-term plans, but the 39-year-old manager has told the board that he wishes to rope in three Sporting players to Old Trafford.
According to the Manchester United higher-ups, Alejandro Garnacho, Rasmus Hojlund and Kobbie Mainoo should remain at the club at all costs. While Amorim has no problems accommodating the three youngsters to his plans, he reportedly asked them to sign centre-back Goncalo Inacio and wingers Marcus Edwards and Pedro Goncalves from the Lisbon side.
Sporting trio Amorim wants at Manchester United
23-year-old Goncalo Inacio of Portugal is among the highly-rated defenders of his generation in Europe. The youngster, who also plays as a left-back and CDM for Sporting when asked, is likely to replace Victor Lindelof in the United setup. Amorim has already confirmed that the Swedish star is not part of his long-term plans, TEAMtalk said in a report.
While it will be interesting to see how Amorim stitches the United defence together with recent arrivals Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro in the mix of things, the pertinent question is whether the INEOS and other stakeholders would agree to pay Inacio's €60m (£51m / $64.8m)-worth release clause.
Goncalo Inacio | Reuters
The defender is also being tracked by United's Premier League rivals Liverpool, but Amorim's presence may help them gain the upper hand in the race should they decide to make a move.
The second Sporting star on Amorim’s shortlist is former Tottenham right-winger Marcus Edwards, the TEAMtalk report said. The 25-year-old English right-winger, whose current contract runs out in 2026, is likely to replace Antony under Amorim. The Spurs reject also carries the same release clause as Inacio, making his arrival a costly affair. Manchester United will try to sell or loan out the Brazilian to raise the fund to buy Edwards, the report said.
The third Sporting CP man Amorim wants at Old Trafford is Portuguese left-winger Pedro Goncalves. The report labels the 26-year-old the toughest of the three to get as he is a darling of the Sporting hierarchy.
Marcus Edwards | X
Goncalves could cost Manchester United a bomb as he is too important for the Portuguese side's domestic campaign as well as European dreams. Under Amorim, Sporting have won all nine games in the league and Goncalves has managed four goals and three assists so far from six outings. His current contract could see him stay at the club until 2027 and has a release clause of €80m.
Pedro Goncalves | Reuters
With the new manager making his intentions clear, Manchester United is likely to have a busy transfer window in January.
