Manchester United report: Erik ten Hag identifies cheaper midfield alternative to Declan Rice

Aurelien Tchouameni
(Image credit: PA)

Manchester United's incoming manager Erik ten Hag wants to sign Aurelien Tchouameni this summer.

The Red Devils are expected to confirm the appointment of the Ajax boss at the end of the month.

He will be United's sixth manager since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013 after a 27-year tenure.

The club's recruitment team has been independently identifying its own targets, but Ten Hag will have a say on who comes through the door.

They could demand up to £58m for the former Bordeaux man, but that would still make him considerably cheaper than Declan Rice.

The West Ham man has also been linked to United but his current employers value him at £150m.

United are likely to lose Paul Pogba at the end of the campaign, with the Frenchman's contract set to expire on June 30.

Greg Lea

Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who's filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha's Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).