Following the news that Erik ten Hag has been sacked by Manchester United, reports have suggested that he had wanted to club to sign four players during his tenure, only to have his targets turned down by the recruitment team.
The Dutchman was fired this week after a poor run of form which sees the club currently 14th in the Premier League. Having been with the club since April 2022, there have been a few high points - notably the FA Cup and League Cup triumphs - but for the most part, his tenure has been disappointing.
The Red Devils spent over £600m on signings for Ten Hag, bringing in 21 new players. Notably, big fees were splashed on fellow former Ajax men such as Lisandro Martinez, Matthijs de Ligt, Andre Onana, Noussair Mazraoui, Antony and others.
Due to his links with the Eredivisie giants, it's fair to assume he played a key role in these acquisitions, but that doesn't mean the now-former boss always got what he wanted in the transfer market.
Ten Hag Wanted Four Transfers at Man Utd
Frenkie de Jong, Alexis Mac Allister, Federico Valverde and Harry Kane
Per a report in ESPN, Ten Hag actually voiced his 'frustration' with Man United ultimately being unable to sign any of his transfer targets. The four men he reportedly wanted were Frenkie de Jong, Alexis Mac Allister, Federico Valverde and Harry Kane.
The article added that Ineos was told during conversations with the recruitment team that many of Ten Hag's transfer demands were "unrealistic." As it happens, both De Jong (Barcelona) and Valverde (Real Madrid) stayed at their current clubs, but Mac Allister and Kane were on the market, later joining Liverpool and Bayern Munich respectively.
It remains to be seen if the deals were viewed as "unrealistic" due to financial reasons, or if the players in question simply did not want to join Man United - perhaps it was a mixture of both. Either way, Ten Hag did not land any of his four dream transfer targets and has not been able to enjoy much success with the squad he was given to work with.
Ruben Amorim is expected to take over at Old Trafford and he is already being linked with a number of players. The Sporting Lisbon boss has a different style of play, so will no doubt hope to sign some stars better suited to his football in the near future. It will be interesting to see if INEOS grant him his transfer wishes.
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