3 months ago
28 After securing the services of Joshua Zirkzee and Leny Yoro, there appeared to be a real sense of optimism at Man United.
The feeling that the club could again be on the verge of something special under the auspices of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS group.
Certainly, Erik ten Hag will have been delighted with landing two major targets, even if Yoro has now injured his metatarsal and is likely to be out for months rather than weeks.
Man United’s transfer bid hits the buffers
News that the club were also vying for the services of Bayern Munich duo, Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui, wasn’t without foundation either.
The Dutchman was ten Hag’s captain at Ajax and so the pursuit of the now 24-year-old is understandable. Mazraoui is the perfect replacement for Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who is believed to be willing to continue his career away from Old Trafford.
However, United have been hit with a hammer blow. According to The Telegraph (subscription required), the Bundesliga giants have turned down the Red Devils’ bids for both players.
Bayern Munich have turned down Man United’s bids for Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair MazraouiThe outlet also advance that the pair, who share the same agent, are bemused by the refusal to accept United’s offer.
There is just under a month to go until the window closes so there’s every chance the deals can still be done.
If the Red Devils don’t increase their bids, however, then it would appear that an impasse will be the result.

Both players are surplus to requirements at Bayern too, so it makes little sense for the Bavarians to try and wring every last penny out of the Premier League giants.
Surely they can’t countenance having the pair as part of their own playing squad if Vincent Kompany has no real intention of including them in his match day squads.
