Manchester United cannot afford to ‘hang around’ if they want to sign Ibrahim Sangare from PSV Eindhoven.
United have already strengthened their midfield this summer with the signing of Christian Eriksen, but Sangare is different in profile, typically operating as a no. 6 rather than a central or attacking midfielder.
Gary Neville has previously urged the Red Devils to sign a ‘world-class holding midfield player‘, and they still haven’t addressed that area.
Ten Hag, of course, would have seen Sangare up close during his time in the Eredivisie as Ajax manager.
The 24-year-old is ostensibly committed to the club until June 2025, having signed from Toulouse in 2020.
But he warned that he could soon be out of reach, with PSV looking to commit him to a new contract.
“PSV want him to sign a new deal, so I don’t think United can really hang around on this one, but he is definitely someone they’ve had on the radar, but I’m wondering what their intent really is given they haven’t made any moves yet,” he said.
The verdict
If you were to pick out one match above all that drove Ten Hag’s interest in Sangare, then it would surely be the Dutch Cup Final.
PSV beat Ten Hag’s Ajax 2-1 on the day, with Sangare producing a man of the match display (according to both SofaScore and Breaking The Lines).
He provided an assist for midfield partner Erick Gutierrez, and also completed all three of his dribbles and notched seven tackles/interceptions combined. The Athletic’s Carl Anka, who covers United, said the Ivorian had had a ‘great game’ in the showpiece.
We will soon see if it was enough to persuade Ten Hag to shell out £34million.
