Manchester United snapped up a new midfielder on transfer deadline day but Erik ten Hag had alternative targets in mind.
As the transfer window came towards its end, Manchester United fans were hoping for a new midfielder to arrive.
A deal for Manuel Ugarte had been rumbling on for weeks and United were more than happy to see other midfielders move.
Sofyan Amrabat joined Fenerbahce on loan amid lingering rumours of a return to United, Hannibal Mejbri joined Burnley and Scott McTominay was, somewhat reluctantly, sold to Napoli.
Finally, with time running out, United signed Ugarte from Paris Saint-Germain and the hope is that the Uruguayan will be the ideal addition to Erik ten Hag’s midfield.
- READ MORE: Manchester United confirmed signings, transfers in, out, loan exits, releases for 2024/25
Teun Koopmeiners on transfer interest
United did though have other midfielders in mind just in case Ugarte proved impossible to sign.
Reports suggest that United looked into signing Jerdy Schouten from PSV Eindhoven but no deal materialised.
That Daily Mail report suggested that United had also considered a move to sign fellow Dutch midfielder Teun Koopmeiners.
Juventus pulled off a deal to sign Koopmeiners though, landing him from Atalanta for a fee of around £46million, as noted by BBC Sport.
Ten Hag will be very familiar with Koopmeiners from his displays in this Eredivisie with AZ Alkmaar and for the Dutch national team.
United focused on Ugarte over Koopmeiners but the new Juventus star has admitted receiving rival interest before choosing a move to Turin.
Koopmeiners has now been quoted by Fabrizio Romano as saying that other clubs wanted to sign him – but he only wanted to join Juve.
“Maybe yes, other clubs were interested in me this summer,” said Koopmeiners. “But I was only interested in Juventus,” he added.
Koopmeiners a very different player to Ugarte
United wanted a mobile and combative defensive midfielder who could cover ground and protect the back four.
Ugarte fits the mould and is already being viewed as the man who can step up as Casemiro struggles.
Koopmeiners isn’t quite in that mould and spent most of last season playing as an attacking midfielder for Atalanta.
The 26-year-old racked up 15 goals and seven assists in a superb campaign before injury ruled him out of Euro 2024.
Koopmeiners could play deeper as a playmaker, but his goalscoring ability is a huge part of his game and always has been.
Buying him to play him in a deep role just wouldn’t have made sense and Ugarte – a younger talent anyway – simply fits what United wanted much better than Koopmeiners.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
