Manchester United are considering signing Marko Arnautovic this summer window and the transfer revelation has raised eyebrows at Old Trafford and beyond.
Having welcomed Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez to the club under his watch, manager Erik ten Hag continues to pursue Frenkie de Jong and other targets. However, there has been limited movement for him in attacking quarters amid speculation over Cristiano Ronaldo and his future.
With that man Ronaldo not fit enough to start and Anthony Martial injured for the curtain raiser, Ten Hag deployed Eriksen as a false nine against Brighton and, no sooner than the dust had settled on that reverse, veteran Arnautovic had emerged as a surprise late target for United this summer.
READ MORE: United considering Arnautovic signing
No stranger to the Premier League, the 33-year-old played for Stoke and West Ham in his pomp – while 15 goals for Bologna last season prove that he still has something to give at the top level. But the jury is out on whether United are right to have the Austrian's name jotted down on their shortlist.
Spending one year under former United manager Jose Mourinho a decade ago, the Portuguese famously called out Arnautovic for having the mentality of a child. However, follow-up comments from Mark Hughes would suggest the 102-cap international has since shaken off those concerns.
Speaking about Arnautovic in 2009, former manager Mourinho said: "Mario Balotelli is his best friend. Coincidentally they have the same problems. Marko is a great guy, but he has the mentality of a child."
Hughes was pressed about those comments on Arnautovic during his time as Stoke manager.
He said: "I think that Jose was always aware about Marko's talent. Obviously, he worked with him at first-hand and clearly Marko was maybe a little bit different in terms of his view of his football life at the time. But he has matured. He's a married man now with a kid and is a senior player in our group.
"He's at a different point in his career and he has a different responsibility to our group than maybe he had at Milan. We have never seen that bad-boy image. Marko has come here and enjoyed the Premier League and what we have been able to give him, which is illustrated clearly by the fact that he has re-signed.
"He's a big personality and a big player for us. With Jose, they were in the same place at the same time but it wasn't meant to be. It didn't work out. But Marko is a more mature player and person now and that enables him to perform at a better level."
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