Manchester United supervisor Erik ten Hag confirmed that his workforce was near signing switch goal Wout Weghorst, however the participant won’t be out there for the Manchester derby.
“We are close. He will not be available for tomorrow,” Ten Hag instructed reporters within the pre-match press convention.
“Weghorst wasn’t even available in the last weeks, it would be a bonus if he was. We have won a lot of games without Anthony Martial,” he added.
Weghorst, who was already on mortgage at Turkish membership Besiktas, seems a stunning substitute for Ronaldo. The soccer nice had his contract terminated by United in November after conducting an explosive interview with Piers Morgan wherein he criticized Ten Hag and the membership’s homeowners.
Ronaldo has since signed for Saudi Arabian membership Al Nassr.
Ten Hag has been eager to usher in cowl in assault to spice up his workforce’s push for Champions League qualification and its pursuit of a trophy in his first season in cost.
Ronaldo’s departure left United with solely two senior strikers in Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford.
Weghorst performed for the Netherlands on the World Cup in Qatar and scored two targets in his nation’s dramatic quarterfinal match in opposition to Argentina. He scored twice late on to ship the match to further time and penalties earlier than Argentina received 4-3 within the shootout.
The 30-year-old Weghorst has scored eight targets for Besiktas this season, together with two in his final three video games.
Weghorst joined Burnley in a $15 million deal from German membership Wolfsburg in January final yr. He managed solely two targets in 20 appearances as Burnley was relegated from the Premier League.
United was linked with a transfer for Cody Gakpo this month, however the Netherlands ahead as an alternative joined rival Liverpool.
Ten Hag is anticipated to maneuver for a long-term substitute for Ronaldo in the summertime, with Harry Kane among the many gamers linked.
United midfielder Donny van de Beek has been dominated out for the remainder of the season with a knee harm,
Man United comes into the match after a commanding 3-0 win in opposition to Charlton Athletic within the Carabao Cup quarterfinal, with Ten Hag turning into the supervisor, quickest to twenty wins with the membership. But the Dutchman harassed on the necessity to win trophies.
“It is nice but you deserve nothing for it. It is about winning trophies. We are here in a project and we want to win trophies,” he instructed the press.
(with inputs from AP)