Manchester United manager, Erik ten Hag, is determined to find quickly solution to the injury crisis rocking hi is team by weighing up move to sign Royal Antwerp midfielder Arthur Vermeeren, according to Sport.
Vermeeren, 18, is due to face Barcelona on Tuesday in the Champions League, having registered an assist for Mark van Bommel’s side during Friday’s 3-0 win away to Westerlo.
But the Belgian youth international is said to be highly regarded by Erik ten Hag, with Barca previously linked alongside West Ham.
Vermeeren is a No.6 and could act as a long-term replacement for Casemiro, who’s come under fire this season for a string of poor performances at the base of midfield.
The Red Devils’ woes were worsened on Saturday when Brighton came to Old Trafford and inflicted an embarrassing 3-1 defeat to pile the pressure on Erik ten Hag. Up next is the mammoth task of facing Bayern Munich away from home in their Champions League group stage opener, ahead of which United have built up a lengthy injury list – and just seen one more player added to it on Monday.
Wan-Bissaka suffers injury blow
Manchester United right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka has suffered a hamstring injury which is set to keep him out for two months. The 25-year-old only played final few minutes of Saturday’s 3-1 loss to Brighton but managed to sustain an injury, the club have confirmed.
Wan-Bissaka joins fellow defenders Raphael Varane, Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia on the sidelines, as well midfielders Mason Mount, Sofyan Amrabat and Kobbie Mainoo, goalkeeper Tom Heaton and forward Amad, while wingers Jadon Sancho and Antony are unavailable due to off-field issues. Ten Hag is likely to start Diogo Dalot and Sergio Reguilon as his full-backs against Bayern Munich.
Since ending Man United’s six-year trophy drought by winning the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle United on Feb. 26, Ten Hag’s team has suffered an alarming nosedive in terms of form and results. Up to and including that 2-0 victory against Eddie Howe’s side at Wembley, Ten Hag’s United had won 72.5% of their games in all competitions. Since that day, United’s win percentage has dropped to 51.9%, and the prolonged loss of form has now seen them make the club’s worst start to a season since 1989-90 by losing three of their first five games of this campaign. Away from home, United have claimed just one point from a possible 27 in games against top-10 opponents and have managed only three wins from their past 10 away from Old Trafford in all competitions.
Tactically, Ten Hag has also struggled to show himself to be a positive game-changer. During the team’s 7-0 defeat at Liverpool in March he deployed centre-forward Wout Weghorst as a No. 10, Rashford as a lone striker and placed Bruno Fernandes on the left, failing to target the defensive weaknesses of Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold. He was also outsmarted by Pep Guardiola during the FA Cup final defeat against Manchester City, while Saturday’s 3-1 defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion at Old Trafford came after Seagulls coach Roberto De Zerbi took less than 20 minutes to negate Ten Hag’s tactical ploy of playing with a diamond formation in midfield.
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