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Former Manchester United coach René Meulensteen believes the club must sign another midfielder – but has urged the club not to cash in on Scott McTominay in order to fund the move.
United have made four signings and still hope to bring in another midfield option before the summer transfer window closes at the end of August.
The club have previously held talks with Paris Saint-Germain over a move for Manuel Ugarte. While those discussions were initially shelved over PSG’s asking price, latest reports suggests negotiations are continuing with a number of different proposals being discussed.
United may have to sell players in order to fund further business with McTominay’s future at Old Trafford under scrutiny. Napoli are in talks over a move while Turkish giants Galatasaray and Fenerbahce are also interested.
But Meulensteen, who served as Sir Alex Ferguson’s first-team coach during the club’s hugely successful period between 2007 and 2013, believes it would be a mistake to sell the Scot.
Instead, he believes the club should be desperately looking to try find a buyer for Antony, insisting the winger has shown nothing to suggest his prospects at the club will improve.
‘I wouldn’t sell McTominay, I would keep him,’ Meulensteen told Metro.co.uk courtesy of Free Bets.
‘I would sell Antony straight away, no discussion. United have better players there now in those positions with Amad [Diallo] coming in, [Alejandro] Garnacho has shown he can play on both sides. Even Bruno Fernandes can play wide if needed.
‘I don’t think you necessarily need another player with pace, you need a player with good deliveries. There’s so many options there. Antony hasn’t done anything to suggest we are going to see anything different this season. But I don’t think the market is jumping up and down to pay his fee and wages.’
‘McTominay will always do a job for you,’ Meulensteen continued. ‘He has popped up with so many important goals and will always give his all and you can play him in different positions. So I wouldn’t necessarily sell him, I think there are other candidates.’
Jadon Sancho is another player who could move on with the club asking for £40million for his services. Ten Hag and the winger have cleared the air following their public falling out last season, which resulted in Sancho being banished from the first-team and returning to Borussia Dortmund on loan.
Sancho was left out of the squad for the opening game of the season against Fulham and while the 24-year-old had been suffering with an ear infection, ten Hag tellingly noted he ‘preferred other players.’
Wary of a repeat of last season’s drama, Meulensteen believes a parting of ways will suit all parties.
‘I think it’s best he moves on. If Jadon is not in ten Hag’s plans, then you are creating another problem. It will be a constant question from the media. Jadon is a good player, we saw that again at Dortmund last season. But it went completely wrong at United.
‘They do not need a repeat of that situation this season. It creates unnecessary noise around the club. You want a good, happy group playing for each other. The best thing for me is Jadon does move onto another club and United moves on without him.’
However a move is financed, Meulensteen believes it is vital United bring in another midfielder to provide energy in the middle of the park. While surprised Ten Hag has not turned to Lisandro Martinez to try and fill that role, he has backed a move for Ugarte, hopeful the club can get the deal across the line.
‘Casemiro has certain attributes that are still very important, he can see a fantastic pass, has so strong in the air too. His timing in attacking the ball is still really good,’ he continued. ‘But he is not the youngest and there are no weak teams in this league. You need legs in midfield and unfortunately he hasn’t got them.
‘So we may need someone in there. Ugarte is someone they are looking at. Most teams who have done well against United have exploited that area. There are turnovers, there are periods where players are out of position and you can run straight through them. So that’s an area they can definitely improve.
‘You need a guy who has combination of things. It’s maybe a stupid comment, but it has surprised me that Ten Hag has not yet used Martinez in that position and used another centre half pairing.
‘Martinez has got legs, he is so tenacious, he knows how important it is to hold your discipline, when to play, when to scan because I have seen him do it. That is what you need. That’s the type of player you need. By the looks of it, Ugarte is 23, he could very well fit that position.’
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