Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is a perfectionist and he constantly wants to improve so it is no surprise to find out that he wants to upgrade his midfield next summer.
This despite the fact that United spent huge money to bring in Casemiro from Real Madrid while also agreeing a deal with Christian Eriksen.
Both have become the go-to pair in the middle of the park and their performances have elevated United to fourth with a game in hand over Newcastle, currently in third and level on points.
Midfield upgrade on ETH’s mind
It has been all over the news that Argentina’s World Cup-winning midfielder Enzo Fernandez is one of the Dutchman’s preferred targets.
While initially it was reported that a January deal could be agreed upon, but the club’s finances being a mess currently means only loan deals are what United have to work with.
In the last couple of days, Chelsea seem to have stolen a march over United in the chase for the Benfica ace’s signature.
Reports had even emerged that the Blues had even agreed to pay €85million for the 21-year-old’s services.
Benfica head coach Roger Schmidt on Enzo Fernández deal and Chelsea’s bid rejected 🔵 #CFC
“It’s disrespectful for all of us, I can’t accept what they are doing” 🎥⤵️pic.twitter.com/3uvYZ93iTC
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 5, 2023
But Benfica president Rui Costa has always been adamant that only paying the full release clause of €120million would see Fernandez leave Lisbon.
As transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has pointed out, no further talks are scheduled between the two clubs after Chelsea’s stance was met with a negative response.
“There are no talks currently scheduled for Enzo Fernandez. Chelsea and Benfica did not reach an agreement, with Rui Costa demanding the €120m release clause to be paid in full,” Romano wrote in his CaughtOffside Substack column.
Chelsea deal failing is good news for United
Benfica coach Roger Schmidt has come out and slammed Chelsea’s approach and termed it disrespectful. The player is also said to be losing focus after Chelsea’s approach.
“There is a club that wants him, they tried to attract him, but they know that they can only have him if they pay the clause.
“It’s disrespectful to all of us, to Benfica, they’re driving the player crazy, they pretend they want to pay the clause and then they want to negotiate.”
If the deal does fall through, United will have the chance to regroup under potentially new owners and try and steal a deal next summer.
United Matchday Magazine – be in the know about everything in red!
Still itching for more United content? Get everything you need right here. For just £1.25 per issue/£3.75 a month you’ll receive unique insights into United, straight to your inbox – before every match and throughout the month.
- Get the exclusive build-up to each match, plus team news, tactics and history.
- Not only that – United Matchday is jam-packed with articles, news, transfer news, puzzles, nostalgia and humour.
- Impress your friends and be in the know about everything in red!
