Manchester United have officially confirmed that an agreement is now in place for them to complete the signing of Lisandro Martinez from Ajax, with the move still depending on trashing out details of the personal terms for the player, the medical, and the player obtaining a valid UK visa.
The 24-year-old has caught the attention of major clubs across Europe with fine performances first and foremost, but also with his ability to play not only his preferred centre-back role, but also as a left-back or a defensive midfielder.
To secure his signature, United mostly had to compete against Arsenal, who primarily wanted him for that versatility. Their first-choice left-back Kieran Tierney, has shown extreme proneness to injuries, injuries which tend to keep the Scotland international out of action for months at a time. Nuno Tavares was the backup option for the role last season, but all the 20-year-old managed to prove is that he’s simply not ready to play in the Premier League. Having lost the race for Martinez, Arsenal have reportedly moved on to Manchester City’s Oleksandr Zinchenko.
At United, Martinez will have a chance to play under former Ajax boss Erik ten Hag, which is believed to have acted as a major factor in his decision to reject the Emirates move in favour of Old Trafford. The fee United will be paying to the Dutch champions reportedly amounts to €65 million, add-ons included.
