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Manchester United hardly had a sniff against Crystal Palace as they surrendered 0-4 to Crystal Palace in their Premier League game at Selhurst Park on Monday.
Rasmus Hojlund hardly got any service and without Bruno Fernandes, the entire attack looked devoid of any sort of creativity as the young Dane struggled to hold the ball up.
Antony has been a massive disappointment while Anthony Martial is expected to depart in the summer while Marcus Rashford’s future remains up in the air.
United could have done with some more creativity up front as Jadon Sancho had a fall-out with manager Erik ten Hag while the club looks set to sell both the winger and Mason Greenwood in the summer.
Help needed up front
The Dutch boss never wanted to overburden the former Atalanta starlet in his debut season and asked for reinforcements last summer as well as in January. Nothing was forthcoming.
One player the Red Devils had targeted was Xavi Simons of Paris Saint-Germain after he excelled for PSV Eindhoven in the Eredivisie.
He scored 22 times while assisting another 12 goals for the Dutch side, finishing as top scorer in the league as his team narrowly missed out on the title.
This resurgence in form prompted the French giants to exercise their buyback clause in a bid to earn a major amount from his sale.
Simons’ versatility – he can play up front or on the wings and even as the No 10, coupled with his excellent technical skills, creativity and hardworking nature made him a standout target for the 20-time English league champions.
However, as Bild (via Sport Witness) have now revealed, the Ligue 1 giants had “already agreed a deal” worth €60 million for the Netherlands international only for the 21-year-old to turn down the move to the Theatre of Dreams.
Simons turned United down
PSG, subsequently, decided to loan out Simons to Bundesliga side RB Leipzig where he has continued in a similar vein, scoring nine goals and providing 15 assists.
The former Barcelona youth product is the third-highest goalscorer for his team while he also has the second-most assists in the German league this season with Leipzig all set to return to the Champions League next season.
Leipzig are desperately trying to hold on to him while his former club Barca are also tempted. Whether United return to the mix remains to be seen.
Simons’ market value stands at a whopping €80 million as per Transfermarkt with his PSG contract valid until 2027. It will take quite the bid to land the attacker on a permanent deal.
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