Manchester United know they will be in the market for a forward in the next 12 months, with the likelihood being Cristiano Ronaldo will leave Old Trafford at some point in 2023...CONTINUE READING
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 08: Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United looks dejected following their sides defeat in the UEFA Europa League group E match between Manchester United and Real Sociedad at Old Trafford on September 08, 2022 in Manchester, England.
Manchester United could reignite their interest in PSV superstar Cody Gakpo, with personal terms reportedly already agreed.
Gakpo, 23, was on United’s radar for much of a window which saw the Red Devils spend more than £200million on six first-team arrivals.
Erik ten Hag had made a clear point of prioritising his options going forward, with the side coming off their worst ever Premier League season.
The urgency for attacking reinforcements was only increased when it became clear Cristiano Ronaldo was agitating for a summer exit.
Ronaldo, along with his agent Jorge Mendes, made it clear to the United hierarchy that he would like a move to be considered, should a Champions League club show their hand.
That situation played right up until the end of the window, although the veteran Portuguese forward ultimately stayed at Old Trafford. However, with the option to cut ties at the end of this season, United are rightly assessing their options to replace him.
Forbes report that Gakpo is firmly on that list of alternatives, having shelved their plans to sign him during the most recent window.
Despite sanctioning a move for Antony, United bosses still believed they could land his Eredivisie rival. However, once the price for Antony hit the heights of £85m, there was a concession that a double move was off the cards.
Gakpo had heavy interest from the Premier League and saw bids from Leeds United and Southampton, accepted in the final hours of the window.
A move to Elland Road had appeared firmly on the cards until the player himself opted to remain in Eindhoven, Gakpo has admitted that he had expected to make the move to Manchester, only to see United’s interest fade when it came to the crunch.
“At the start of the window, United registered their interest but not very strongly, so I was waiting for a bit, and then the end was approaching and the signals became more positive,” Gakpo said at the end of the window.
“I started thinking it could fall that way eventually. The interest faded last week, so the whole window I worked towards that and then it faded. So then I was watching last week, thinking ‘what is the right thing to do?’.”
The winger hasn’t let transfer speculation harm his game at all however and already has 10 goals and nine assists in 13 matches this season.
That means United are still interested observers with Forbes revealing they expect no hiccups should they rekindle their efforts.
They also suggest Ten Hag’s charges went as far as agreeing personal terms with the player, before completing a U-turn.
PSV have also disclosed they have an agreement in place with Gakpo and his representatives, which will allow him to leave in 2023, should a suitable offer be lodged.
The club’s CEO Marcel Brands explained: “We did state that if there were certain offers, we would have to sell. This is not only from a financial point of view, but also because agreements were made with the Gakpo camp before my time.”
