Although a player is always advised to never go back to a club that has changed him in the past, there are instances when the chance to do so is alluring. It may be to relive the glory days of the past or, as in Memphis Depay’s case, to seek repentance.
Even though the additions of Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez this past week have finally sped up the process, Manchester United has generally experienced a slow summer.
It’s still uncertain whether Erik ten Hag will acquire all the signings he wants because negotiations have occasionally been slow. The deal for Frenkie de Jong is at a standstill as he demands the club pay him the deferred payments.
It is uncertain how long the negotiations will go on before a settlement is reached or whether United will give up. However, United runs the risk of not obtaining the maestro Ten Hag needs in his midfield if there isn’t a breakthrough in either direction soon.
On the attacking front, everything seems confusing at the moment. Even before Cristiano Ronaldo put in his desire to depart, United still needed at least one dynamic attacker to come through the door.
If he gets his way, United won’t have many options in the attacking positions.
Antony had been targeted as a potential solution, but Ajax’s high asking price appears to have kept the Red Devils away for the time being, and no other choices have emerged.
Before now, Barcelona has managed to sign Robert Lewandowski despite not paying the players they already had and continuing to experience financial difficulties. The deadly striker has secured his ideal transfer after making it obvious that he wants to leave Bayern Munich.
Memphis Depay, a former United striker, is in a perilous position because the goal-scoring Polish striker will unquestionably start as Barcelona’s primary attacker.
He only moved to Camp Nou last summer for the same position, but he was already fired and now appears to be the next player to be forcibly removed. According to The Metro, the Dutchman has been instructed to find a new club, with Tottenham reportedly showing the most interest.
Although it would still be a big profit because he signed for free a year ago, the striker has reportedly been given a price tag of only about £17 million.
Manchester United could do much worse than to pursue their former player if Memphis is available for such a low price. Evidently, his time at Old Trafford didn’t go as planned. He came in full of promise fell short of it, and left after only 18 months.
But in the five years since, he has developed into a player who can lead his club and become a flexible, lethal, and potent forward. Even while he may not have lived up to expectations, he is undoubtedly a player United could benefit greatly from.
Memphis made 178 appearances during the course of his four seasons with Lyon, scoring 76 goals and dishing out 55 assists. At Barcelona, he made 15 contributions in 37 appearances, even if a sizable percentage of those appearances were as a substitute.
In any case, the Dutch striker would add goals and a sizable depth across the team’s porous forward line. You won’t find such well-known quality for such a low fee.
The 28-year-old also fits into Ten Hag’s current recruitment strategy, which entails bringing in players with strong ties to Dutch football or whom he knows from his time at Ajax. Erik Ten Hag does this in the hope that these players will quickly grasp his coaching techniques and put them into action on the field.
The United manager would love to add Memphis to his team because he is a versatile forward who can play through the middle or on either flank.
Even if it’s advised to never go back, a summer transfer for United to Memphis almost sounds too logical. They might as well inquire about him while they’re dealing with Frenkie de Jong.
