Erik ten Hag is reportedly ready to turn to former Aston Villa midfielder Anwar El Ghazi to remedy Manchester United’s attacking midfield difficulties.
Following a series of events in recent days, United appear to be in a weak position. Antony, worth £86 million, is presently on leave, while Jadon Sancho’s future remains uncertain following the England international’s spat with Ten Hag.
With the transfer window closed, Premier League clubs must rely on the free agent market to bolster their squads. El Ghazi, on the other hand, is someone United’s manager is well acquainted with.
El Ghazi, an Ajax academy product, faced Ten Hag’s Utrecht during his tenure at the Amsterdam club. He departed the Johan Cruijff ArenA before Ten Hag took over in 2017, but his Dutch international caps as a teenager established him as one of the country’s best emerging stars.
After spending 18 months with Lille, the winger moved on loan to Aston Villa, where he helped the club gain promotion to the Premier League in 2019. He subsequently spent three years at Villa Park, including a loan spell at Everton, before joining PSV Eindhoven, however the Dutch club announced in September that his contract had been terminated.
According to The Mail, Saudi Arabia is interested in El Ghazi. He may yet choose United if given the chance to return to the Premier League.
“PSV and Anwar El Ghazi would like to announce that they have reached an agreement to dissolve the player’s contract by mutual consent,” said a PSV statement made on September 4. “Anwar El Ghazi was the winner of both the TOTO KNVB Cup and the Johan Cruijff Shield.”
“Last season, the forward joined PSV from Aston Villa.” In 33 outings for PSV in all competitions, he scored nine goals and assisted twice. The club wishes him all the best in his future endeavors.”
In addition to Antony and Sancho’s circumstances, United have been missing Mason Mount for several weeks. In August, the summer signing sustained an injury that kept him out of England’s international matches against Ukraine and Scotland.
United visit Brighton in their first game back from the international break, and it remains to be seen whether Ten Hag decides to bring Sancho back into the fold. The former Borussia Dortmund man responded after the boss stated that he was not involved in the defeat against Arsenal owing to his training performances, and the back-and-forth has spurred speculation that the 23-year-old could move in January.
“I have conducted myself very well in training this week,” Sancho stated after the loss in North London. “I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I will not discuss; I have been used as a scapegoat for a long time, which is not fair!” All I want to do is smile and contribute to my squad while playing football.”
