Julen Lopetegui wants to sign 2 Barcelona stars if he replaces Erik ten Hag as Manchester United boss: Reports
Julian Lopetegui has reportedly asked for two Barcelona players if he is to take over at Manchester United. The Spaniard wants Ferran Torres and Alejandro Balde from the Catalan side to bolster the squad at Old Trafford.
As per El Nacional, Lopetegui has set conditions for his possible move to Manchester United and one of them is the signing of two Spanish players. The former Real Madrid and Wolverhampton manager is open to replacing Erik ten Hag, who is under pressure after a poor first half of the season.
Barcelona are reportedly open to offers for Torres but are not interested in selling Balde. Xavi sees the left-back as a key member of his squad and is unwilling to sanction a move.
Meanwhile, Ten Hag has stated that he is not thinking about the possible sacking. Reports suggest Sir Jim Ratcliffe wants a change once his takeover is done, but the Dutchman was quoted by The Guardian as saying earlier this month:
"That’s no concern [over losing my job] because I’m here to win and I have to make the team play better. If you play, then good is not good enough. We are inconsistent and I have to work on the team playing for longer periods on a high level. I want to progress with my team in the right direction, so we are here on a project."
Manchester United confirmed the 25% takeover of Ratcliffe on Christmas Eve, but he will have to wait six-eight weeks for Premier League approval to begin work.
Manchester United told to sack Erik ten Hag by former Liverpool player
Former Liverpool player Danny Murphy has claimed that Manchester United need to sack Erik ten Hag if they want to get back to the top. He believes that the manager has underperformed and wants the Dutchman replaced soon.
Writing in his Daily Mail column, Murphy stated at the start of December that Ten Hag was not helping the team progress and added that the manager was unable to compete with rivals like Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City.
He wrote:
"If United want to dine at English football’s top table again, Ten Hag is not the manager to take them there. United just cannot compete with City, Liverpool and Arsenal with the players they have under Ten Hag. I don’t see a team that’s progressing after a good first season. I see one that’s regressing and I don’t see how that will change with Ten Hag in charge."
He added:
"It’s not all Ten Hag’s fault, of course. Many of the problems at United lie above and beyond him. Some of the players also need to look themselves in the mirror. However, Ten Hag has been hugely influential in recruitment at United and none of the signings can yet be deemed a success. Some of the players seem to lack motivation too, which is on him, and he needs to be tactically better."
Apart from Lopetegui, former Chelsea manager Graham Potter has also been linked with the Old Trafford job. However, the Red Devils are yet to decide on the future of the Dutchman.