Erik ten Hag has already decided to put five Manchester United stars ‘up for sale’ as he prepares to rebuild his squad ahead of next season.
The Dutchman was announced as the new Red Devils boss last week and has been handed a three-year contract to give him time to turn things around at the club. The team have endured a miserable campaign under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick and their recent loss to Arsenal highlighted the significant changes required at Old Trafford.
Ten Hag is expected to be well-backed over the summer so that he can get the wheels in motion for the club's revival, especially considering funds were kept ready for him in January. Though the transfer budget alone may not be able to pay for all of the arrivals that the 52-year-old desires, and therefore he is willing to sell five players in order to bolster his budget.
ESPN report that Ten Hag is able to spend between £100million and £150m this summer, though is willing to listen to offers for Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Eric Bailly, Alex Telles, Phil Jones and Anthony Martial in order to bolster his funds. The cluster of players all appear to have been deemed surplus to requirements by their soon-to-be new boss, though whether offers arrive for any of them remains to be seen.
Wan-Bissaka has not been a regular starter since Rangnick took control of United despite arriving at the club from Crystal Palace in 2019. Martial is already playing his football elsewhere having joined Sevilla on loan in the Sevilla, though he has hardly put himself in the shop window in the La Liga – failing to score in eight league appearances.
The departures of Jones and Bailly will be no great shock to any fan given that neither of the pair have regularly featured this season. It also paves the way for another central defender to arrive at the club, which is thought to be on Ten Hag’s shopping list heading into the summer.
A striker and a central midfielder are also high up on the Dutchman’s list of priorities. Edinson Cavani, Jesse Lingard and Paul Pogba are all out of contract at the end of the season which leaves both positions short of depth.
Cristiano Ronaldo is set to be the only out and out no.9 at the club when Ten Hag arrives, and his forward options could worsen if he is unable to convince Marcus Rashford to commit his future to the club. The academy product hasn’t been firing on all cylinders this season, with reports speculating that the England international is considering whether he should leave United.
Tottenham striker Harry Kane has been named as one of the strikers that are being considered by the Red Devils, though the north London outfit are sure to demand an astronomical fee for his services in a similar way that they did to Manchester City last summer. Though if Ten Hag is able to part ways with the five players mentioned previously then he could have the budget to sign the world-class striker.
