Ajax Willing Sell Lisandro Martinez For €55-60 Million With The Player Pushing For Manchester United Move

Manchester United’s hopes of acquiring top target Lisandro Martinez may not all be lost as latest reports suggest that Ajax are still open to work towards a deal. 

In an alternate universe, Martinez has already been pictured holding up United’s new 2022/23 home kit after the Reds matched Ajax’s initial €50 million valuation for the Argentine defender last week. 

After being stuck between a rock and a hard place – having to pick between United and Arsenal – Martinez chose the red side of Manchester and United acted immediately. 

Ajax always said that if both teams paid €50 million, it would be down to the player to decide. The player decided in advance and United obliged with their part of the deal. However, a plot twist soon followed. 

The Dutch champions received United’s offer and announced that they would hold a board meeting the following day to decide whether or not they can afford to refuse the impressive sum. In the end, they did. 

Mike Verweij reported over the weekend that despite being offered what they initially wanted, Ajax were still adamant that Martinez would not be leaving this summer – unless United paid more. 

That was a somewhat unprecedented turn of events as once concrete valuations become public knowledge, clubs rarely tend to go back on their word. Ajax pride themselves on recruiting promising talents and developing them ahead of profitable sales. Their actions were uncharacteristic to say the least. 

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There is belief that Erik ten Hag’s former side want the €50 million to be a fixed amount, rather than a sum dependent on add-ons – even though reports did state that United’s proposed bonuses were very achievable. The Reds reportedly offered Ajax €45m + €5m. 

After news broke that Ajax are opting to play hard ball, it felt as though a line may have been crossed in regards to dealing with United. There have been no further briefed updates on United’s behalf. Just silence. 

In hindsight, Ajax may have made a mistake in turning down a significant profit on Martinez while his value is at a career peak. The 24-year-old emerged as one of Europe’s finest centre backs last season but he would very much be an unproven quantity in another league. 

Martinez is said to be a big admirer of Ten Hag – and vice versa – with the Dutch manager being a major factor in the defender wanting to come to Old Trafford. After that became apparent, Martinez pushing for a move, if Ajax continued to price him out, was not out of the question. 

As of Monday evening, that is now the case. Martinez is reportedly keen on an Ajax exit and the Premier League is his promised land. 

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Verweij’s recent reports suggest that the player is “demanding” a move and Ajax have once again put a concrete price on his signature. 

He tweeted: “Ajax are willing to go to the table with United over Lisandro Martinez, as the player demands – but they want €55-60m.” 

The news is a net positive for the Reds but United will undoubtedly be conflicted about what to do next. Ajax asking for one thing and then demanding another may have breached some trust at board level. For club reputation’s sake, United can’t afford to match another valuation only to be turned down again. 

Somewhat traditionally in recent years, seemingly simple business has gone on to drag out quite a bit for United. The Reds continue to struggle to get top targets across the line in reasonable time. However, this week should see quite a few deals come to their conclusions.

The imminent arrival of Christian Eriksen is set to be completed after thorough medical tests are said to be good to go. 

John Murtough and Richard Arnold have also been pictured in Barcelona with the Frenkie de Jong deal still very much up in the air.

The latest news suggests that United do have a deal in place with the Spanish side and the sole hold up is the money De Jong is owed by the Blaugrana. 

It is also said that United have told the Catalan club they want the deal to be completed by Friday.

It shouldn’t take long for the Martinez deal to either progress or burn out now, either. With the player applying pressure, Ajax may be forced to reconsider their approach and United could be encouraged to launch one more bid that they’ll hope will close the deal.