Man Utd may have their hopes of signing Michael Olise with Erik ten Hag decision after agreeing terms with the star forward
Manchester United have risked shooting themselves in the foot in the race to sign Michael Olise.
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has stressed the need for three signings this summer, taking a rare approach by publicly naming the areas that he believes the Red Devils need to improve upon in the transfer window.
Ten Hag’s future is far from secure at Old Trafford, as Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS conduct an end-of-season review that may decide that a parting of ways is the way forward for United, with a host of managerial names reportedly being considered including Xavi and Thomas Tuchel.
Manchester United have Michael Olise in their sights this summer, but delaying a decision over Erik ten Hag and his future could end up costing the Red Devils in their pursuit of strengthening the squad.
Ten Hag himself admitted that the United frontline needs to be bolstered over the next few months, despite the big-money additions of Rasmus Hojlund, Antony and Jadon Sancho in recent years.
And under new decision-makers INEOS, led by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Olise has been targeted with the view to restoring United to their former glory.
Olise has been well-admired by United for a number of years and various reports claim that they are prepared to step up that interest and prise him away from Crystal Palace, though they face significant competition as a result of a release clause in the Frenchman’s contract.
That is unlikely to change with Ten Hag set to remain at the United helm. He will even engage in talks with the club over extending his current contract, which expires at the end of next season.
But delaying a decision on Ten Hag’s position is likely to have made potential targets wary of giving the green light on a move to Old Trafford up until this point, considering their rivals were able to boast a level of stability that had yet to be achieved on the red side of Manchester.
As Ratcliffe and co deliberated over Ten Hag, Chelsea have made the decision to part ways with Mauricio Pochettino, hired ex-Leicester boss Enzo Maresca, and have already agreed personal terms with Olise.
Work in the transfer market can finally get underway now that Ten Hag is aware of his future at the club, but the Red Devils may already be a few too many steps behind their counterparts at Stamford Bridge.
Such precise decision-making has been a stark contrast to that at Old Trafford and may give Chelsea the edge in their battle to sign Olise.
United will feel that deciding on whether to retain Ten Hag or find a replacement required time. But opting against reaching an outcome in a timely manner has seen their rivals afforded the chance to gazump them in the transfer market and move earlier on the likes of Olise, should they desire to do so.
