Manchester United “should have signed” Tottenham star who excelled in 3-0 defeat

Manchester United have been told that they “should have signed” one Tottenham Hotspur player who excelled in the 3-0 defeat at Old Trafford.

Manchester United suffered their third defeat in six Premier League games, losing 3-0 to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday afternoon.

Spurs took an early lead through Brennan Johnson, after an exceptional 70-yard run from Micky van de Ven, and kept consistent pressure on André Onana’s goal throughout the first half.

United’s troubles deepened when Bruno Fernandes was sent off for a challenge on James Maddison just before halftime, causing their performance to unravel.

Tottenham extended their advantage after the break, and despite United’s efforts to respond, Spurs secured the win with a third goal from Dominic Solanke in the final 15 minutes.

United should have signed Van de Ven

Van de Van starred in the Old Trafford game and has been extremely impressive during since moving to Spurs from Wolfsburg for £43 million in the summer of 2023.

Speaking to Premier League Productions, Tim Sherwood suggested that Van de Ven would have been a better signing than Matthijs de Ligt this summer at Old Trafford.

“He [Ten Hag] talked about not having the personnel last year to play higher up the field, so we are going to have to defend deep,” Sherwood said.

“And then he signed De Ligt. Micky van de Ven should have been his signing to get them up the pitch.”

Unrealistic signing that shows United must act earlier

Signing Van de Ven in the summer just gone is simply unrealistic. He had only joined Spurs a year prior and had an excellent debut campaign.

United are not the United of old and can convince any player to join, but they should be in situations to spot talent like Van de Ven before they make a big Premier League move.

That is what they seem to be doing by signing players like Joshua Zirkzee. Someone like Van de Ven does seem like a missed opportunity considering the price tag for similar level defenders right now.

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