Erik ten Hag offers update on Man Utd's 'strict' transfer plans
By Tom Gott
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has revealed the club are working hard to try and secure his preferred transfer targets this summer.
The Red Devils have already brought in Lisandro Martinez, Tyrell Malacia and Christian Eriksen at Ten Hag's request but continue to be frustrated in their pursuits of the boss' top two targets, Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong and Ajax winger Antony.
90min understands Chelsea are now rivalling United for De Jong's signature, while Antony is growing frustrated with Ajax's refusal to lower their asking price, which sits at close to the €100m mark.
"We know what we want, and it's not about signing players," Ten Hag offered as an update. "It's about signing the right players.
"We are really planning it carefully, and we are strict with it, hardworking, to get the right players in to construct a good squad who can win games.
Listen now to 90min's Talking Transfers podcast, with Scott Saunders, Graeme Bailey, Harry Symeou & Toby Cudworth. On the latest show they discuss Chelsea's plans for Marc Cucurella, Wesley Fofana and potentially Denzel Dumfries. There's the latest on James Maddison, interest from big clubs in Jamie Vardy, more on Cristiano Ronaldo and Frenkie de Jong, plus Diogo Jota's new deal and Roberto Firmino's Liverpool future.
If you can't see the podcast embed, click here to download the episode in full!
When asked whether De Jong was one of those 'right players', or if he could offer an update on the transfer saga, Ten Hag refused to give anything away.
"No, I can't," he said bluntly. "I don't talk about a player who is not under contract at Manchester United."