Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has been told he should do all in his power to move on one of the club’s big-money flops amid claims the Red Devils are firmly on the trail of Denzel Dumfries.
The new United boss has had his work cut out trying to strengthen his squad this summer. Having seen his new charges labour to a sixth-placed finish last time out, it is clear that vast improvements are needed. But getting in the players he craves has been anything but easy.
Thankfully, Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez have all signed on the dotted line. The trio are three men that Ten Hag knows well from his time in the Eredivisie. And it seems he wants the theme to continue with Frenkie de Jong and Dumfries next on his wishlist.
The saga surrounding the bid to sign De Jong is well documented. Now though it seems a major advantage has been taken away amid startling claims over his relationship with Ten Hag.
But while a deal for De Jong continues to elude Ten Hag, he seemingly has a much simpler passage towards Denzel Dumfries.
And with Inter Milan making clear their asking price, United and Chelsea are both in the running to sign him.
The United manager, however, may need to sell before he can buy. To that end, work is underway at clearing out some of United’s deadwood. As such, the likes of Eric Bailly, Phil Jones and Axel Tuanzebe are all hoping to secure moves away.
United told to scrap Wan-Bissaka to fund Denzel Dumfries signing
And another player who could soon depart Old Trafford is Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
He signed in a £50m deal from Crystal Palace in summer 2019 but has struggled to recapture his best form. While defensively he is pretty sound, it is going forwards where he has failed to deliver.
And with Ten Hag favouring an attacking blend of football with much emphasis on the full-backs, there is a growing feeling that Wan-Bissaka’s time could be up.
That’s certainly the message coming through from pundit Alan Hutton. The former Villa man, speaking to Football Insider, insists United must do all in their power to move him on.
When asked if he should be sold, Hutton stated: “I think so.
“He’s obviously had a tough time, I think defensively he’s a really good player. He’s difficult to get past and he’s shown that.
“But going forward, I think that’s his weakness.
“When you play for a team like Manchester United under Ten Hag, that’s the outlet. The left wing-back, the right wing-back and the full-backs they give you the width and the crosses into the box and I don’t think he fits that bill.
“They’ll look for different options to fit into the new manager’s mould. But Wan-Bissaka, they paid £50m for him, is anybody going to pay that? I can’t see it. It’ll be interesting to see what team takes the bait for him.”
Wan-Bissaka’s time is well and truly up
Wan-Bissaka looked to have the world at his feet when he departed Palace for Manchester United in 2019. And while that £50m fee looked steep, his bright start to life ay Old Trafford appeared to show that United had a bargain.
His long legs and excellently-timed tackles often won him plenty of plaudits in those first few months.
There was even talk of an England call-up too. However, his form has since deserted him and his confidence shot.
As it stands, he is currently the most costly Englishman of all time to never win an England cap.
Hutton’s observations are right. Wan-Bissaka has offered very little to United going forwards, with just two goals and nine assists in 126 appearances. By contrast, Dumfries netted four times and added three assists last season alone.
It was little surprise either to see his place in the side taken by Diogo Dalot once Ralf Rangnick took charge.
As such, it would come as no surprise to see United let the player leave, even for around half the fee they paid for him.
At 24, there is still time of course for Wan-Bissaka to resurrect his career. But his chances of doing that with Manchester United appear extremely unlikely.
