Manchester United have secured their first two signings of the Erik ten Hag era. The Manchester Evening News understands that the club have secured deals for both Frenkie de Jong and Tyrell Malacia subject to a medical and more signings will likely follow.
De Jong was the new manager's top target and the club have been pursuing a deal with Barcelona over the past month, but the second deal came as more of a shock. The Dutch full-back had all but secured a move to Olympique Lyonnais before United swooped in at the eleventh hour to hijack the deal.
Malacia symbolises the sort of deals that United should be pursuing. He is young and looking to take the next step in his career and will be able to act as backup for Luke Shaw before eventually challenging the English defender for the starting position.
READ MORE: Six United careers could be defined by Erik ten Hag's first season
He has also been signed for a reasonable fee, around €15m plus add-ons but it is likely that will more but recoup the cost by selling the players he is replacing. Alex Telles and Brandon Williams will be allowed to leave Old Trafford this summer and their combined fee should be more than Malacia.
And United should repeat this strategy when they look to improve the team on the other side of the field. The right-back position needs significantly upgrading and while Diogo Dalot looks set to stay at Old Trafford, the club will listen to offers for Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
Wan-Bissaka still has a lot to offer but the question remains whether he will be able to play the style of football that Ten Hag is looking to implement. How much of the £50m fee that United paid to Crystal Palace to sign the full-back will be able to be recouped in any sale however is yet to be seen.
But when targeting a full-back, United should look for the same basic profile as Malacia. A talented player on the cusp of taking the next step for a reasonable fee who can challenge Dalot for the starting spot and play a significant role in Ten Hag's new-look United side.
It will all be part of the club hopefully shifting away from the biggest and most obvious names unless they can play a key, defined role in the squad. And then hopefully United can start taking significant steps towards challenging for trophies and even the Premier League again in the long term.
Sign up to our United newsletter so you never miss an update from Old Trafford this season.
READ NEXT:
