Red Devils boss appeared to send a transfer message to Nathan Ake by telling him that Man United ‘need a left-footed defender’s moments after Bournemouth’s defeat at Theatre of Dreams at the weekend. Red Devils push to secure a place in next campaign’s UCL was bolstered by a 5-2 victory over Cherries on the weekend.
Ole, meanwhile, is keen to bolster his squad this summer and recruiting a new defender is understood to be one of his priorities for the upcoming transfer window. Napoli’s Koulibaly is highly regarded by Red Devils but Ake could possibly be a cheaper alternative if Cherries, who are 19th in the PL, are relegated at the end of the campaign.
And Man United supporters are convinced that Netherlands international is on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s radar after he gave a few words of encouragement to the ex-Chelsea centre-back as Cherries footballers walked off the pitch at Man United. After bumping fists with Nathan, the Norwegian boss told the defender: ‘Good luck’.
Nathan replied, ‘cheers, thank you’ before Solskjaer appeared to follow up with: ‘We need a left-footed centre-back, so keep going’. Nathan, who still has two years remaining on his deal with Cherries, has also been linked with a move to Man City as Pep Guardiola is also keen to sign a new centre-back this summer.
Speaking last month, former Red Devils defender Paul Parker urged Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to sign the Dutch centre-back. ‘I’d drop Victor Lindelof and bring in Nathan Ake from Bournemouth,’ Paul said. ‘Chelsea doesn’t seem to want him, so now is the time to make a move.’
