Man Utd transfer 'target' told to avoid Premier League money trap amid interest

A reported Manchester United transfer target has been urged to seriously consider whether a move to Old Trafford would be the right step. The Red Devils were quiet during the January transfer window, forced to bide their time due to Financial Fair Play rules and their high level of summer spending.

But they are likely to be more bold in the summer window, with the presence of new partial owner Jim Ratcliffe likely to be felt. One player United have been heavily linked with is Ajax youngster Brian Brobbey. United have shopped heavily in the Netherlands since the arrival of Dutch boss Erik ten Hag, and Brobbey is attracting plenty of attention with his form.

Since returning to Ajax permanently from RB Leipzig, the 22-year-old has scored 26 goals in 51 league games, earning a Netherlands cap along the way. But having already left Ajax for the Bundesliga in a move that did not work out, Brobbey has been urged to think carefully about a move to United should the opportunity arise.

“He and Brobbey both went abroad too early at the beginning of their careers,” prominant Dutch journalist Wim Kieft has said. “Although Depay had achieved something at PSV, the step to Manchester United turned out to be too big. Leipzig could not match that level, but it was still too big a step for Brobbey from the youth of Ajax.

“His salvation was that Ajax brought him back for a lot of money. Here in his own familiar environment, he is developing much better, but you are not immediately ready for a move to a top European club after one good Eredivisie season. In England or Spain, you are like Cody Gakpo and Depay against top defenders. It wouldn’t be smart if he left Ajax after this season.

“Maybe his agent wants to quickly make a profit from his current form, but for Brobbey himself, another season of the Eredivisie would be the best from a sporting point of view. At Ajax he can become even stronger, score more, gain more confidence, play even better and then he entered a major foreign club as an established name. Don’t let money be the determining factor.”