Coach Erik ten Hach’s recruitment of dream games has all been accomplished. He is able to fill half of the starters with Ajax players.
Manchester United announced the recruitment of Matthijs de Ligt and Nusair Mazraoui through its official website on the 14th (Korea time).
Manchester United said of De Licht, “We are delighted that De Licht has joined the club. He is signed until June 2029 and has the option of a one-year extension,” while Mazrawi noted, “We are delighted to have Mazrawi joining. He is signed until June 2028 and has the option of a one-year extension.”
Neither player hid their joy of joining the club. De Ligt said, “As soon as I heard that Manchester United wanted me, I was excited about the opportunity to take on a new challenge for the historic club. I was impressed with the vision and my role that was presented in the conversation afterwards. Ten Hag has made the beginning of my career, so he knows how I can do my best and I’m looking forward to playing with him. I know what it takes to succeed at the highest level, and I’m determined to continue that record at Manchester United.”
Mazrawi also said, “It’s an amazing feeling to be a Manchester United player, and I can’t wait to walk out in red at Old Trafford. Everyone I’ve met has the same ambition to win a trophy with us, and I could feel the determination to achieve it. Ten Hach was instrumental in my development as a player, so I’m happy to be reunited with him in his prime. I know what he’s looking forward to, and I’ll do everything for the success of the team.”
The two players are the result of coach Ten Haach’s obsession with Ajax this summer and also a successful reinforcement of the summer transfer market. Manchester United is putting a lot of effort into strengthening its power in the transfer market this summer. It has already reinforced the back and front line with the recruitment of Lenny Yoro and Joshua Girksey, but Manchester United wants more players. In particular, the center back, which Yoro is out due to a metatarsal injury, and the right full-back position, which is in desperate need of reinforcement, are the positions that Manchester United wants to change the most.
The players that Ten Hach paid attention to were Ajax’s disciples. De Ligt and Mazraoui were listed as Manchester United’s transfer priority.
De Ligt immediately received Manchester United’s attention after being listed on the Bayern release list. Initially, Manchester United had been aiming for Bayern defender Kim Min-jae since last summer, but the possibility of a transfer was predicted through influential reporters as it turned to De Ligt in the transfer market. There were reports that the transfer was close with the news that Manchester United and De Ligt had reached a personal agreement. Manchester United desperately needs to reinforce its center back as Rafael Varane left the team after the 2023-2024 season. Coach Ten Haq, who has been preoccupied with recruiting his old student, seemed to have set De Ligt as his priority this summer. 메이저놀이터
It has since calmed down. Manchester United was preparing another recruitment without offering any specific suggestions. They were preoccupied with recruiting Yoro. After Yoro moved to Manchester United, rumors of a transfer between Manchester United and De Ligt cooled down. However, due to Yoro’s injury, Manchester United had to bring De Ligt back and started negotiations with Bayern again.
Along with De Ligt, the player Manchester United wanted was Mazraoui, who was coached by Tenhach from Ajax. Mazraoui is a former Ajax player who moved from Ajax to Bayern in 2022. He has played for Ajax since his youth, and he also made his professional debut at Ajax. Mazraoui also showed good performance in the team when Tenhach was playing for Ajax.
Ten Haq wanted Mazrawi because of Antony, who is considered the worst recruitment of Manchester United. Antony is considered one of the worst recruitments in Manchester United’s history in just two seasons after joining Manchester United. He moved to Manchester United ahead of the 2022-2023 season, and although he invested 86 million pounds (about 140 billion won) at the time, it is safe to say that there was virtually no effect on recruiting Antony. Antony, who showed a little easy performance in the first season, did not show any presence at all in the second season, 2023-2024, angering fans with his worst performance.
Ten Hag didn’t give up on Antony, and he even wanted to recruit Mazrawi to save him. However, Mazrawi showed a consistent performance since his transfer to Bayern in 2022, but he hardly showed what he expected when he was in Ajax. At the end of the season, Joshua Kimmich’s return to fullback also gave him a long time on the bench.
Initially, the recruitment of the two players was stalled due to Bayern’s high transfer fee. British media reported that “Manchester United has already reached personal agreements with De Ligt and Mazraoui. However, the player camp, which believed that Manchester United’s offer matched what Bayern’s club wanted, was embarrassed by the rejection of the offer. With Bayern having made it clear that they can leave the two players, it is unlikely that they will raise the amount significantly. Manchester United still hopes to make a deal with Bayern.”
Manchester United and Ten Hag, who pushed through the stalled negotiations, eventually secured the acquisition of the two players. The Athletic said De Ligt will move to Manchester United with a basic transfer fee of 45 million euros and a bonus of 5 million euros. He will sign a five-year contract with Manchester United, which will also include an option to extend the contract by one year. Bayern has already accepted Manchester United’s offer of 15 million euros in basic transfer fee and 5 million euros in bonuses for Mazraoui. The transfer will be made on the premise of Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s transfer. Wan-Bissaka said the transfer of the two players was made, saying that the West Ham Medical Test is scheduled in a few days.
With the addition of two more Ajax-born students through the official announcement, Manchester United will include as many as five of the Ajax players coached by Coach Ten Haach in the past. Apart from Donny Pandervik, who has already left, about half of the starters, including Antony, Andre Onana and Lisandro Martinez, along with De Ligt and Mazraoui, can be made up of Ajax players.
Tenhach’s obsession with Ajax disciples was once again made by recruiting.