Manchester United offer €40 million for 24-year-old player - Reports
Manchester United have made a bid for Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez, as per TYC Sports journalist Hernan Sisto. He tweeted that United are ready to splurge €40 million on Martinez.
His tweet read: (translated from Spanish):
"Offer of #ManchesterUnited by Lisandro Martínez. The English team wants to take over the Argentine defender in exchange for € 40 million."
Oferta del #ManchesterUnited por Lisandro Martínez.
El equipo inglés quiere hacerse con el defensor argentino a cambio de €40 millones
@mufcMPB https://t.co/Sjh112qt5f
The 24-year-old centre-back has been linked with multiple clubs. As per ESPN, Arsenal have also made a bid of €40 million for the player. Their first offer of €30 million was turned down by the Dutch outfit. ESPN's report also stated that the player is ready to leave Ajax but the Eridivise winners are under no financial obligation to sell their asset.
Ajax have already aprted ways with Ryan Gravenberch who joined Bayern Munich for a reported fee of €25 million, including add-ons. Their forward Sebastian Haller is on the radar of Borussia Dortmund, who need to replace Erling Haaland and hence could pay up to €36 million for the Ajax striker (as per ESPN).
Ajax winger Antony is also attracting interest from United and according to Sports Illustrated, the Old Trafford outfit will have to cough up €80 million for the Brazilian winger.
Lisandro Martinez will likely reinforce Manchester United's leaky defense
Manchester United had a poor season last time out. A big problem in their overall play was their leaky defence. They kept only 10 shutouts in 49 matches across competitions all season. United conceded a mammoth 69 goals, 57 of which came in 38 league games.
Despite switching formations and trying different personnel, their defensive worries got the better of Manchester United. Captain Harry Maguire received a lot of stick for his poor outings.
Raphael Varane had an injury-hit season while Eric Bailly and Phil Jones hardly got a run of games under their belt. Lindelof, despite playing 35 games, did not look confident at the back for the Red Devils.
Hence, getting a new player like Martinez, who is physically strong as well, might help United. The 24-year-old centre-back has been brilliant for the Dutch side since signing for them in 2019. He also has prior experience of working with the new Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag.
Manchester United look set to complete the signing of Tyrell Malacia and will then turn their attention to Lisandro Martínez. #MUFC [@hirstclass, @_pauljoyce]
Martinez has already played 118 games for Ajax. He has registered six goals and as many assists in those games. The Argentine defender also has the versatility to play as a left-back.