Man Utd following Sir Alex Ferguson advice as Erik ten Hag plan comes to light

Manchester United’s new First Team Manager is plotting an ambitious rebuild in his first summer in charge, but will need to be frugal in the transfer market in order to get the number of players he needs

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Five players whose Man Utd careers ten Hag can revive

Manchester United have expressed their interest in signing Christian Eriksen after the Dane’s brilliant return to the Premier League.

The 30-year-old has looked back to his best since joining Brentford in January, just months after suffering a cardiac arrest on the pitch during Denmark’s Euro 2020 clash with Finland. Eriksen was subsequently fitted with an implantable cardiovascular defibrillator, but was released by Inter Milan with rules in Italy forbidding professional footballers from playing with such equipment.

His compatriot Thomas Frank then offered him a second crack at the Premier League with Brentford, a chance he emphatically grabbed. Eriksen spent seven years with Tottenham, before leaving for Inter in 2020, and back in the capital he enjoyed a brilliant second half of the season registering four assists.

Having proved he is still more than capable of competing in the top flight there is a queue of potential suitors and Mirror Football understands United have joined the race. Along with the Red Devils; Brentford would like to retain his services, whilst Spurs and Everton are also monitoring his situation.

New United boss Erik ten Hag got a first-hand glimpse of Eriksen’s talents at the back end of last year, when Ajax allowed him to train with their senior team in order to rebuild his fitness. And those training sessions in Amsterdam have clearly impressed Ten Hag, who is now hoping to land him in his first window in charge.

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Central midfield is an area that the Dutchman knows he will have to instantly upgrade this summer, having seen the likes of Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata all leave. It is believed Ten Hag wants as many as six players before the start of his first campaign in charge, inheriting a squad coming off the back of United’s worst ever Premier League season.

The 52-year-old is the fifth permanent manager to attempt to replicate the feats of Sir Alex Ferguson in the dugout, with the club’s title drought stretching back to his retirement in 2013. Ferguson has already sent his best wishes to the new man in charge and will likely be nodding along at his latest transfer plan.

Back in 2012, the legendary Scottish manager tried to sign Eriksen, with Manchester Evening New s reporting Ferguson went as far as to hold talks with the midfielder’s agent. Eriksen himself was open to a move to Old Trafford, having emerged as one of the most promising players in Europe with Ajax.

At the time, it is believed Ferguson held some reservations and needed to watch him more closely before a bid could be sanctioned. United eventually turned to the £17m Shinji Kagawa, who was running down his contract at Borussia Dortmund.

That was a decision which backfired, with Kagawa lasting just two seasons at the Theatre of the Dreams, before he returned to Borussia Dortmund. And to rub salt into the wounds Eriksen became one of the best midfielders in Europe with Tottenham, but Ten Hag could now finally get a deal over the line, some 10 years later.