Erik ten Hag may still be facing frustration in Manchester United’s pursuit of his primary transfer target, but a breakthrough elsewhere will come as a major relief.
Negotiations to sign Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong have dragged on and on and the presence of United chief executive Richard Arnold and football director John Murtough in Spain this week has not had the desired effect. De Jong is no closer to becoming a United player and Ten Hag will have to continue planning without him as the pre-season tour reaches Melbourne.
Nevertheless, there is – finally – something to get excited about for the United manager and the club’s fans. The club are closing in on the £46million signing of Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez. After holding firm through early bids from United and Arsenal, Ajax are finally ready to accept the departure of the 24-year-old Argentina international.
He is not De Jong, but he would be a major signing for Ten Hag, who personally advocated for the arrival of a player who underpinned much of his good work at Ajax. Martinez was signed by Ajax from Argentine side Defensa y Justicia in 2019 under Ten Hag’s watch and developed from a homesick fish out of water into a seasoned, cultured and versatile defender .
Upon his arrival in Amsterdam, Ten Hag tried to mould Martinez into a “brain for central midfield” following the departure of De Jong to Barcelona. Initially it was a culture shock – as Martinez himself later admitted.
"At the beginning, I felt like going home and crying," he told La Nacion back in 2020. "The first few weeks were horrible. Different intensity. Different control. Different passes. Different reading of the game.” But he soon got up to speed and now, after three years with Ajax, he will arrive at United able to play at centre-back, left-back and central midfield.
That versatility is a major asset for Ten Hag, but there is perhaps another reason why the Dutchman was so keen to sign him. Mirror Football understands that Martinez’s arrival will hasten the departures of Eric Bailly, Axel Tuanzebe and Phil Jones. The plan is to have a four-man roster of centre-backs, with Martinez joining captain Harry Maguire, last summer’s arrival Raphael Varane and the fairly dependable Victor Lindelof.
Martinez offers a point of difference, not only because he is already schooled in the ways of Ten Hag’s philosophy, but also because he is the only one of the aforementioned players who is naturally left-footed. Every one of the six centre-backs currently on United’s books is right-footed – and that has caused a long-standing issue.
Maguire has generally played on the left side of central defence in recent years, but prefers to pass on his stronger right foot. That causes issues in possession, but also out of it, with United potentially vulnerable to runs down the left channel, between left-back and centre-back. It is something Ralf Rangnick identified and tried to resolve during the final stages of his unsuccessful interim spell in charge.
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"Since I arrived, we have been discussing this because he prefers to play on the left side although he is right footed," Rangnick told MUTV after a 1-1 draw with Leicester on April 2 in which Maguire was moved to right centre-back.
"And now I saw him play for England last week, when he played in a back four on the right side, that's why I decided that he should play on the right side which is better for him anyway when we open up the game from our backline for him as a right-footed player. I think it's a lot easier for him to play from there."
If, as expected, Martinez does complete a transfer from Ajax in the coming weeks, then Ten Hag will not have the same issue as his predecessor. The Argentina international is confident on the ball, good in the air for a player of 5ft 10in and will offer some much-needed competition for United’s captain. He looks like a perfect fit.
