Erik ten Hag addresses Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazaroui’s transfer situation with clear message

Erik ten Hag has been asked about Manchester United’s pursuit of Bayern Munich’s defensive duo Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazaroui.

Ten Hag conducted his first pre-match press conference of the season ahead of Saturday’s Community Shield final against Manchester City.

The Reds have several injury concerns ahead of that game, especially in the defensive line.

Doubts surrounding the availability of Luke Shaw, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelöf means that United may only have three fit senior defenders heading into the first game of the season.

This has made the potential signings of Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazaroui even more important for the club after Bayern Munich rejected an initial double-bid for the pair.

Asked about the two Bayern defenders and how much he is ‘pushing’ for their signings, Ten Hag stayed tight-lipped but reassured that the recruitment process is in a good place.

“We need a big squad. The format of European Football is going to change too. We need a group of players that is going to cover all these games,” he told reporters.

“I can’t address specific names. This not nice towards these players and their club.

“I don’t go into details, where we are now in recruitment, what we are working on. We know what we are doing, we are in a good position with the squad and just wait, patience, and at the right moment, we will tell you.

“When we have news, we will announce it. You’ve seen the market, it is quite quiet still. We have done business. We have done two deals; it’s about timings, the market, the market options, the right moment and the right things.”

While frustration is building amongst the fanbase, with the Premier League campaign kicking off in eight days, the United manager is right. United are on the brink of several deals but just need the dominos to start falling.

Player sales have been the big issue for the club this summer, which may be why they are treating Wan-Bissaka and Lindelöf very carefully after their knocks.

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