Man City offer latest twist in Man Utd’s pursuit of Jurrien Timber after agent’s cryptic post

The agent of Jurrien Timber, Revien Kanhai, has refuelled reports of Manchester United’s interest in the Ajax defender.

Timber has been strongly linked with a summer switch to Old Trafford and a quick reunion with Erik ten Hag, however the latest transfer rumours had suggested that a deal looked unlikely given Louis van Gaal’s insistence that the player must be getting regular minutes to be included in the Netherlands’ World Cup squad.

Despite that, Timber’s agent breathed new life into the ongoing saga, when he posted a picture of Manchester city centre on his Instagram account on Tuesday night, with the caption: ‘Love to travel for work’.

Unsurprisingly, this post generated a lot of speculation that he had travelled to the UK to negotiate a move for his client, coupled with a report in the Daily Mail that the Red Devils are willing to listen to offers for centre-backs Eric Bailly, Phil Jones or Axel Tuanzebe, meaning they may be forced into the market for a replacement.

But, a follow-up post from Kanhai has suggested he is, in fact, not in Manchester to negotiate a move for Timber.

The agent added an image of Manchester City’s offices to his Instagram with a caption of ‘meetings’, followed by a picture of the club’s Academy Stadium.

Kanhai is the CEO of Forza Sports Group who act as the agency for nearly 100 players, many of whom play in the Netherlands.

However, one player he represents is City’s Issa Kabore. The 21-year-old right-back joined the club in 2020 and has spent the last two seasons on loan.

In 2021/22, Kabore moved on loan to Troyes, a French club who are part of the City Football Group, and made 31 Ligue 1 appearances.

With that short-term deal terminating at the end of the season, it’s likely Kanhai is in Manchester to discuss Kabore’s next move.

As well as Timber and Kabore, Forza Sports Group represent Leeds United defender Pascal Struiijk and Celtic’s Boli Bolingoli.