Former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor believes that Manchester United would have suffered a “travesty” if they had sold Scott McTominay in the summer window.
McTominay has fallen down the midfield pecking order under United manager Erik ten Hag and has been struggling for regular first-team minutes at Old Trafford.
United had rejected a substantial £30m bid from West Ham early in the window for McTominay, with the Red Devils wanting a higher transfer fee for him.
According to reports, Fulham had made contact with United over the possibility of signing McTominay on deadline day.
The Premier League side were keen to land McTominay as a potential replacement for Joao Palhinha, who was expected to sign for Bayern Munich before the move collapsed.
READ MORE: Owen Hargreaves ‘excited’ to see more of £64m United star who is ‘the real deal’
Agbonlahor speaks out on ‘top’ player McTominay
McTominay, who was also linked with Newcastle and Bayern, remains at Old Trafford after a move away from United failed to materialise.
The 26-year-old Scotland international is still believed to be an important part of Ten Hag’s squad, despite United willing to sell him if the right offer came in from a club.
MORE UNITED STORIES
Agbonlahor has insisted that former Hammers target McTominay must now “prove” Ten Hag wrong and “play his way into this side.”
Speaking to Football Insider, the talkSPORT pundit said: “It would’ve been a travesty if they sold McTominay.
“They need the numbers, they’re in the Champions League now. You’re going to get injuries, suspensions. Ten Hag needs the numbers.
“Fred had to go, he wasn’t good enough — but it was strange to see them try and push McTominay out the door.
“On his day, he’s a top player. He’s still at the club now so he’s just got to prove them wrong and play his way into this side.”
McTominay apparently ‘said no’ to Fulham
According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, McTominay had ‘spoke’ to Fulham about a transfer ahead of the window shutting.
But the United midfielder reportedly said ‘no’ to a move to Craven Cottage, with Palhinha’s transfer falling through due to Fulham not finding a replacement in time.
“[…] From what I’m told, Fulham also spoke to the Manchester United midfielder, but he said no to Fulham,” Romano said (via Football365).
“So, what happened is that the Palhinha deal collapsed because Fulham couldn’t find a replacement.
“Palhinha was shocked, and Thomas Tuchel was not happy at all with the situation — he had been insisting to have the defensive midfielder for a long time, even though Bayern only pushed for the move on deadline day.”