Manchester United target Brian Brobbey has opened the door to a summer move to Arsenal after naming the Gunners an one of three ideal next clubs for him – while also revealing the sort of fee Ajax would seek for his services, according to TEAMtalk.
The Red Devils have stuttured and stumbled their way through the 2023/24 season – all too infrequently showing what they are capable of at their absolute best. And while 4-3 wins over Liverpool in the FA Cup show exactly what they can achieve when playing to their best, 3-0 home defeats to Bournemouth and injury-time 4-3 losses at Chelsea – while leading 3-2 heading into full-time – have shown Manchester United at their worst.
As a result, and while Ten Hag can steer his side into a second successive FA Cup final on Sunday if they can overcome Championship side Coventry at Wembley, it is their inconsistent league form that reportedly leaves his job in jeopardy.
To that end, a new report on Saturday have talked up the possibility of the Dutchman being axed by United and replaced at the helm by Zinedine Zidane after the iconic Frenchman rejected the chance to take charge of an elite European side.
With those doubts building over Ten Hag’s future, it is little surprise to see potential summer targets appearing to tread carefully when discussing their futures and amid potential links to United.
One player for whom United have been persistently linked with since Ten Hag took charge two summers ago is Netherlands striker Brobbey.
Raids on Ajax have been comnonplace since the Dutchman’s appointment with Antony and Lisandro Martinez making the move for a combined £142m.
However, prospects of Brobbey becoming the latest player to move from the Amsterdam Arena to Old Trafford this summer have taken something of a nosedive after the player namechecked Arsenal, alongside United and Real Madrid as an ideal next club instead.
“I think I am doing quite well. I still want to achieve many great things in my career, such as playing for a very big football club,” Brobbey said in an interview.
“Real Madrid is a beautiful club. Arsenal, Manchester United… How much am I worth? After the European Championships, €80m. Going to the European Championships is also a dream of mine.”
The Gunners too, like United, are also in the market for a new striker this summer and could well be alerted by the comments made by a man who has scored 17 goals in 26 Eredivisie matches this season.
Earlier this season, Brobbey confirmed he had been the subject of an approach from United boss Ten Hag over a possible swith to Old Trafford.
“Erik ten Hag called me and said that at United, my agent would get millions of euros and I could earn a multiple of my Ajax salary. But our decision was clear: we wanted to go to Ajax,” Brobbey told De Telegraaf.
“Manchester United wanted to have me, but I insisted on returning to Ajax. To make that possible, my agent Jose Fortes Rodriguez even waived a hefty percentage of the sell-on clause.”
Since breaking through at Ajax, Brobbey has scored 35 times in 83 matches for the Amsterdam giants.
His main competition for a place in the Netherlands’ Euro squad appears to be another Arsenal and United striker target in Joshua Zirkzee.
