Manchester United are eyeing a shock raid on Premier League rivals Liverpool for England midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Oxlade-Chamberlain has endured a mixed spell at Anfield, winning Premier League and Champions League titles with Liverpool but struggling to cement a place in the starting XI.
The 28-year-old only started nine Premier League games last season and could be on his way out as he enters the final year of his contract.
New Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag wants to sign a couple of midfielders this summer to bolster his squad and compensate for the departures of Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata and Nemanja Matic, who have all left Old Trafford on free transfers.
Frenkie de Jong remains Ten Hag’s top target but Manchester United may have to turn to other targets after Barcelona rejected their opening offer for the Dutchman.
According to talkSPORT, former Arsenal star Oxlade-Chamberlain has emerged as a potential target for United as they look to bolster Ten Hag’s squad.
Oxlade-Chamberlain developed into one of the brightest players in England at Arsenal but has been in and out of the Liverpool team, partly due to injuries but also because of the fierce competition under Jurgen Klopp.
Oxlade-Chamberlain’s boyhood club Southampton are also believed to be interested in a deal, with the England star open to a summer move.
Ten Hag has a big job on his hands at the Theatre of Dreams and takes over a side who finished just sixth in the Premier League last season.
Charlie Nicholas, the former Arsenal striker, believes it will take ‘at least another three years’ for United to catch the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool.
He told BonusCodeBets: ‘Manchester United have been signing individuals who are only happy to be an individual, and if things go well, people will say that they’re good for the dressing room and people will like them.
‘But that means nothing if they’re not producing all the time. As soon as I saw the scary price that they signed Paul Pogba for, I couldn’t believe that no one in the club went to Sir Alex Ferguson and asked what his issues were when he was younger that meant he was happy to let him go because he could have said that unless Pogba has changed his attitude and become a team player, then don’t touch him. He’s been a disaster!
‘Pogba has a brilliant CV as a footballer, but it’s not a United CV. And of course, some of the coaches that came in, it was always about the individual.
‘Louis van Gaal and Jose Mourinho wanted to be bigger than the players and that’s not Manchester United. I look at Manchester United now and they’ve lost their identity. They don’t have a DNA anymore.
‘The dressing room is a disaster and Manchester United have made an absolute mess of the situation. It’s going to take them at least another three years to get anywhere close to Liverpool and Man City.’
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