£25m target could join Manchester United’s rivals and make debut against Ten Hag

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Talk about a twist of fate. After weeks of speculation suggesting that Timo Werner could be on his way to Manchester United, the former Chelsea forward may now make his second Premier League bow not for Erik ten Hag’s side but against them.

Tottenham Hotspur are due to travel to Old Trafford on January 14^th. And Ange Postecoglou’s side could touch down in the North West with a new face in their ranks.

HITC Football understands that Tottenham have submitted an offer to take Timo Werner on loan from RB Leipzig with an option to make the deal permanent next summer. And the Germany international, who was also considered by Manchester United before making that £25 million move back to the Red Bull Arena in the summer of 2022, is expected to jump at such an opportunity.

Manchester United lose out to Tottenham Hotspur

His preference, HITC has been informed, was always to join a club based in England if he did indeed find himself dusting off his passport, packing his belongings, and jetting back across the Channel this month.

“Manchester United are not looking to sign a super top player, but Manchester United are actively looking for opportunities. It could be one, it could be two. They are speaking to strikers,” Fabrizio Romano said recently.

““They have spoken to representatives for (Borussia Dortmund’s Donyell) Malen, to representatives around Europe. Werner, (Serhou) Guirassy… many, many players are on the list for Manchester United for a striker.”

But when Erik ten Hag goes head to head with Postecoglou next week, you can now expect to see Werner wearing white rather than red.

Former Chelsea man Timo Werner set for England return

How much of a ‘blow’ this proves to be remains to be seen, of course. Werner was hardly prolific during his previous Premier League stint at Chelsea, scoring a paltry 10 goals in 56 top-flight games. Man United have made a habit of creating and wasting goalscoring chances in recent months and Werner, an erratic finisher at the best of times, is hardly an obvious solution to such a problem.

But, still, with Man United and Spurs among the challengers for a coveted top four spot this season, Werner’s presence in the visiting XI rather than the home one adds another intriguing subplot to an already enthralling fixture.