Next Man Utd striker: Second bid for goal-hungry star ready after Ten Hag decides on ultimate Weghorst replacement

Erik ten Hag has made a final decision on the striker he wants to lead the Manchester United front line next season and club chiefs are resultantly preparing to submit a second offer for him, according to a report.

Man Utd need a new centre-forward this summer after loanee Wout Weghorst returned to parent club Burnley. Ten Hag does have Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial in his squad, but Rashford wants to play at left wing and Martial cannot be relied on due to his injury problems.

Man Utd held preliminary discussions with Tottenham to see if they would be open to selling Harry Kane ahead of next season. But Spurs do not want to strengthen a Premier League rival and therefore put Man Utd off Kane by demanding a huge £100million.

Bayern have since become interested in the England skipper, and they will not have to pay as much as they are not one of Spurs’ direct competitors. The German champions are drawing up an £80m offer for Kane after seeing an opening £60m bid rejected.

Man Utd have checked out several other goalscorers after finding out Kane would not be available. The list includes Eintracht Frankfurt’s Randal Kolo Muani, Goncalo Ramos of Benfica and Atalanta star Rasmus Hojlund.

On Wednesday, a report revealed Man Utd were planning new approaches for Ramos and Hojlund after trimming their striker shortlist down to two.

READ MORE: Ten Hag snookered as Man Utd transfer collapses and second deal hits potentially fatal hurdle

They have already held talks with Benfica over Ramos’ availability in May, while Italian reports have claimed Atalanta rejected a €35m (£30.1m) bid from Man Utd for Hojlund last week.

The Telegraph have now provided a big update on the situation as Man Utd aim to finally end their striker search. They claim Man Utd will launch a second move for Hojlund after Ten Hag made the Denmark international his ‘preferred’ striker signing.

Man Utd want Serie A star as next forward

Man Utd believe an improved offer worth £50m should do the trick. And sources have previously suggested Atalanta would sell Hojlund if a bid worth this amount was made.

While the Red Devils also like Kolo Muani and Ramos, those two players are simply too expensive right now. Ten Hag has been given a limited budget to find a new midfielder, striker and goalkeeper.

An initial £55m, plus £5m in potential add-ons, has already been spent on Mason Mount, while Andre Onana could cost around £47m. That means the potential £50m fee for Hojlund just about fits into Ten Hag’s transfer kitty.

However, this is not just about money. Ten Hag has been hugely impressed by what he has seen of Hojlund. The attacker is just 20 years old but is already scoring goals at the highest level. After joining Atalanta from Sturm Graz last summer, he went on to net 10 goals in 34 games during his debut season in Italy.

And midfielder Christian Eriksen has already given Man Utd his blessing to sign Hojlund. While the pair were on international duty with Denmark, Eriksen admitted he ‘can see’ Hojlund playing for Man Utd. It is likely Eriksen has let Ten Hag know about Hojlund’s mentality and how good he is in training.

Hojlund will be delighted if a switch to Old Trafford goes through. He has previously labelled them a ‘huge club’ and explained how he could reach his goal of playing at the ‘top shelf’ by signing for them.

Although, The Telegraph do point out one potential stumbling block for the transfer. They state that Man Utd are unlikely to make a second offer for Hojlund before the prospective new takeover is agreed.

The Glazers are currently considering takeover bids from Sheikh Jassim and Sir Jim Ratcliffe. They are also weighing up whether to pursue further investment while keeping majority control of the club.

Man Utd fans will be hoping the Glazers make a final decision soon, otherwise a rival European suitor could emerge to sign Hojlund first.

Meanwhile, a trusted source has revealed what Ten Hag is thinking about doing with Mason Greenwood amid a Man Utd investigation into the attacker.