Manchester United may have a hidden advantage in negotiations to sign Atalanta striker Rasmus Hojlund.
United are desperate to sign a striker this summer, with Anthony Martial currently the only recognised centre-forward at the club. Wout Weghorst did not adequately replace Cristiano Ronaldo on loan in the second half of last season and Erik ten Hag now wants a long-term solution.
Mirror Football understands that United want to loan Mason Greenwood to Atalanta to help facilitate a transfer for Hojlund. They hope he could be signed for a fee in the region of £40million, despite being under contract with the Italian side until June 2027 following a move from Sturm Graz last year.
Atalanta appear to be in a strong negotiating position, but United have a trick up their sleeve. Manchester Evening News reports that Ten Hag's agent Kees Vos started representing Hojlund in May and is now working on a move to Old Trafford for his client.
The 20-year-old has managed 10 goals and four assists in 34 games for Atalanta and has six goals in as many games for Denmark. It is understood that Ten Hag prefers Hojlund to Eintracht Frankfurt star Randal Kolo Muani, but negotiations are still at an early stage, with director of football John Murtough taking the lead.
Former United midfielder Nicky Butt believes Hojlund would be a gamble for Ten Hag because he’s so young and hasn’t played in the Premier League before. "He seems like the right fit, but it's a gamble when you buy someone from a different league,” he told Sky Sports.
“He's never played in our league and you don't know what it's going to be like when he comes here. But you can only rely on recruitment. You're ultimately as good as your recruitment team so we’ll see how that pans out."
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United are currently working on deals to sign Hojlund and Inter Milan goalkeeper Andre Onana. It is hoped the duo will join Mason Mount in signing for the club this summer, with the former Chelsea midfielder arriving for £60m.
Meanwhile, Ten Hag has decided to make Harry Maguire, Jadon Sancho, Fred and Scott McTominay available for transfer. The Dutchman knows that he needs to bolster his transfer budget through sales and wants a streamlined squad for the 2023/24 season.
Pre-season training has begun at Carrington, with the players not involved in international football working with youngsters on the training pitches. Those who played for their countries recently will return early next week ahead of a trip to Norway for the first friendly.
They begin their pre-season campaign against Leeds in Oslo before playing against Lyon in Edinburgh. They will then jet off to the United States for a packed schedule of games before rounding off their campaign in Dublin against Athletic Club.
