Erik ten Hag breaks silence on Cody Gakpo transfer snub and admits Man Utd ‘need numbers’ in huge January window hint
ERIK TEN HAG has admitted that Manchester United “need numbers” after his side missed out on Cody Gakpo.
The Red Devils were strongly linked with the Dutchman for much of last summer.
They opted to prioritise a move for Antony, however, but were expected to return for Gakpo in January.
The Dutch World Cup star was understood to be keen to move to Old Trafford from current club PSV.
But United have now missed out on the talented attacker, who will join Liverpool instead.
The Reds opted to fork out £37m to sign Gakpo in the wake of Luis Diaz’s serious injury, and having lost Sadio Mane last summer.
United, meanwhile, will return to the drawing board – having axed Cristiano Ronaldo last month.
Asked about his side’s failure to sign Gakpo while appearing on Amazon Prime Video after United beat Nottingham Forest 3-0, Ten Hag didn’t shy away from his desire for reinforcements.
He said: “I don’t talk about individual cases.
“We are looking for a striker, it would be good with so many games coming.
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“We want to stay in all the leagues we are playing in and you need numbers in the squad.”
On his side’s hunt for a forward, the 52-year-old added: “We are always in the market but it has to match the sporting and financial criteria.”
United fans fumed online after being beaten to Gakpo by their fierce rivals.
And they could be set for even more disappointment when it comes to their club’s January transfer budget.
According to the Mail, the Red Devils will have NO transfer funds to spend next month.
This will leave them scrambling around the loan market for a Ronaldo replacement.
In January 2020, the Red Devils recruited former Watford forward Odion Ighalo on a temporary deal from Shanghai Shenhua.
And they could be looking for a similar profile of loan transfer this time around.