Exclusive: European heavyweights looking to steal Man Utd stalwart but Ratcliffe has eyes on different prize

European giants Ajax are eyeing a loan move for Manchester United star Christian Eriksen but the Premier League giants have different plans for the midfielder, TEAMtalk can reveal.

The Denmark international joined Man United in the summer of 2022 after deciding against extending his six-month stay at fellow Premier League side Brentford – where he had a hugely productive spell in the second half of the 2021/22 season.

Just over a year after the former Tottenham man suffered a cardiac arrest during his country’s Euro 2020 match against Finland, Eriksen signed a three-year deal with the Red Devils to complete a remarkable turnaround.

The 32-year-old, who had to be resuscitated on the pitch back at the Euros in 2021 and then was later fitted with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator device, has since made 72 appearances for United, scoring three goals and bagging 13 assists in all competitions.

However, just 49 of those have come in a starting role as the experienced Dane has slowly become more of a fringe player at Old Trafford under manager Erik ten Hag.

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Indeed, last season, Eriksen played 28 games and a meagre 12 of those were in the starting XI, as the rise of Kobbie Mainoo limited his game time; along with competition with Scott McTominay, Casemiro, and more.

The club’s minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe is looking to be bold in the transfer market, with the Red Devils trying to sign Paris Saint-Germain’s Manuel Ugarte, Benfica’s Joao Neves, and Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi is on their radar, too.

If any of those are signed, Eriksen’s chances of game time are likely to be restricted further still, and with the Dane now in the final year of his contract, he may have a decision to make over his future.

TEAMtalk revealed United want to spend another £100m on capturing defensive midfielder Ugarte and Bayern Munich defender Matthijs De Ligt, to add to the £88m they spent on Bologna striker Joshua Zirkzee and 18-year-old Lille centre-back Leny Yoro.

Ajax eye loan and then free transfer for Man Utd man

To make this possible, however, they will need to sell first, with Casemiro, Scott McTominay, and Harry Maguire at the top of their list in terms of potential exits.

Now, TEAMtalk sources state United are looking to offload Eriksen as well, and his former team Ajax – where he made a name for himself as a rising star of the game between 2010-13 – are interested in bringing him back to the Eredivisie.

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The troubled Dutch giants, who ended up a whopping 35 points behind league winners PSV Eindhoven with a fifth-place finish in 2023/24, have struggled financially of late and would target a loan deal for the midfielder.

They would then try to sign him on a free transfer when his contract expires next summer but United may want to try and sell him this summer, or at the latest in January, to get a fee for him.

An interesting few weeks lie ahead for him, United, and Ajax.