Erik ten Hag ‘opposed’ one United transfer this summer – but INEOS pushed for deal anyway

Manchester United are poised to complete their fifth signing of the summer imminently, with Manuel Ugarte flying into England today to complete his medical.

In turn, Scott McTominay is expected to depart Manchester for Naples in the coming hours after the Red Devils accepted a €30 million bid (£25m) from Napoli on Sunday, which includes a 10 per cent sell-on clause.

The Scotland international would then join Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Donny van de Beek, Willy Kambwala, Mason Greenwood and Facundo Pellistri as first-team sales this window. Hannibal Mejbri is also closing in on a permanent move to Burnley, while Jadon Sancho faces an uncertain future ahead of Friday’s deadline.

Despite McTominay being linked with an Old Trafford exit since the beginning of the summer, it’s been reported that Erik ten Hag ‘opposed the transfer’, according to journalist Gianmarco Giordano – and that isn’t all that hard to believe given his comments in pre-season.

After a friendly win over Rangers, the manager said of his midfielder: “We want to actually keep him because he’s a very important player for our squad.

“We’ve seen what he can contribute last season. When we had the sixes, he could play in a more advanced role. He’s a highly-interesting player for our team.”

Ten Hag braced to lose a trusted lieutenant

Yet, McTominay ultimately decided that now was the time to end his 22-year association with United, having joined the youth setup at just five years old.

You can’t really blame him, either, as he’ll have been well aware that his game time was likely to reduce even further upon the arrival of Ugarte.

One thing’s for sure: should the Carrington graduate complete the move, he’ll be one Red who’ll always get a stellar reception upon any potential return to Old Trafford.