Gavmundo
03-30-2007, 11:31 AM
Sir Alex Ferguson may have his hands full as Manchester United step up their pursuit of an unprecedented second treble, but the manager is already planning enthusiastically for next season.
Ajax are bracing themselves for a bid from United for Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, their prolific young striker, who Ferguson is understood to have identified as one of his main summer targets along with Owen Hargreaves, the Bayern Munich and England midfield player, and Nani, the Sporting Lisbon winger.
Huntelaar has established himself as the new golden boy of Dutch football since failing to make the grade at PSV Eindhoven and has already drawn favourable comparisons to Ruud van Nistelrooy, the former United striker.
While Ajax are loath to lose Huntelaar, the clamour for the 23-year-old forward’s signature is such that John Jaakke, the club’s chairman, is thought to be confident of being able to name his price for the player, who would cost at least double the £6.8 million Ajax paid SC Heerenveen for his services just over a year ago, and possibly much more.
Ferguson is believed to retain a serious interest in Fernando Torres, the highly rated Atlético Madrid and Spain forward, although he would come at a far higher premium than Huntelaar.
Torres recently signed a new deal with Atlético that ties him to the club until 2009, but while the escape clause in the 23-year-old’s contract was reduced from £41.4 million to about £27 million as part of the agreement, that price may still prove too prohibitive for United, who are expected to spend about half of their estimated £40 million transfer budget on Hargreaves.
Huntelaar cost Heerenveen just £70,000 when he joined the club in 2004 after turning down the offer of a new contract with PSV, where he struggled to make much of an impact.
In his first season at Heerenveen, Huntelaar scored 20 goals in 38 appearances and followed that up with 21 goals in as many games during the first half of the 2005-06 campaign before Ajax came calling. He finished the season with a staggering 45 goals in 46 matches and has looked equally impressive this term, scoring 28 times in all competitions.
Despite being in Marco van Basten’s preliminary Holland squad for last year’s World Cup finals, Huntelaar did not travel to Germany but he has impressed for the national team since, scoring twice in the 4-1 win over Ireland last August.
Ferguson has already sent scouts to watch Huntelaar, most recently in Ajax’s 4-1 win over FC Twente just under three weeks ago, when the striker scored a hat-trick.
The United manager has been encouraged by the apparent ability of Dutch players to adapt quickly to the demands of the Barclays Premiership, a quality that may make Huntelaar seem like less of a gamble than Torres, whose style is more suited to the Continent.
Of more immediate concern to United, however, is the Premiership game at home to Blackburn Rovers tomorrow, when victory would open up a nine-point gap at the top, if only for a couple of hours with Chelsea not playing until later in the day against Watford.
While United are still in contention to win the FA Cup and Champions League, Park Ji Sung, the midfield player, wants to help to ensure that the Premiership title returns to Old Trafford after a four-year absence.
“It is possible for us to get the results to succeed in all competitions,” the South Korean said. “But my No 1 target is the Premier League.”
Park did the double of league and cup with PSV in the Netherlands and he believes the experience will hold him in good stead as United’s season enters its critical phase. “I have had a similar experience in the Netherlands,” he said.
“Even if we have bad results, we have to bounce back quickly and concentrate on the next game.”
Ajax are bracing themselves for a bid from United for Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, their prolific young striker, who Ferguson is understood to have identified as one of his main summer targets along with Owen Hargreaves, the Bayern Munich and England midfield player, and Nani, the Sporting Lisbon winger.
Huntelaar has established himself as the new golden boy of Dutch football since failing to make the grade at PSV Eindhoven and has already drawn favourable comparisons to Ruud van Nistelrooy, the former United striker.
While Ajax are loath to lose Huntelaar, the clamour for the 23-year-old forward’s signature is such that John Jaakke, the club’s chairman, is thought to be confident of being able to name his price for the player, who would cost at least double the £6.8 million Ajax paid SC Heerenveen for his services just over a year ago, and possibly much more.
Ferguson is believed to retain a serious interest in Fernando Torres, the highly rated Atlético Madrid and Spain forward, although he would come at a far higher premium than Huntelaar.
Torres recently signed a new deal with Atlético that ties him to the club until 2009, but while the escape clause in the 23-year-old’s contract was reduced from £41.4 million to about £27 million as part of the agreement, that price may still prove too prohibitive for United, who are expected to spend about half of their estimated £40 million transfer budget on Hargreaves.
Huntelaar cost Heerenveen just £70,000 when he joined the club in 2004 after turning down the offer of a new contract with PSV, where he struggled to make much of an impact.
In his first season at Heerenveen, Huntelaar scored 20 goals in 38 appearances and followed that up with 21 goals in as many games during the first half of the 2005-06 campaign before Ajax came calling. He finished the season with a staggering 45 goals in 46 matches and has looked equally impressive this term, scoring 28 times in all competitions.
Despite being in Marco van Basten’s preliminary Holland squad for last year’s World Cup finals, Huntelaar did not travel to Germany but he has impressed for the national team since, scoring twice in the 4-1 win over Ireland last August.
Ferguson has already sent scouts to watch Huntelaar, most recently in Ajax’s 4-1 win over FC Twente just under three weeks ago, when the striker scored a hat-trick.
The United manager has been encouraged by the apparent ability of Dutch players to adapt quickly to the demands of the Barclays Premiership, a quality that may make Huntelaar seem like less of a gamble than Torres, whose style is more suited to the Continent.
Of more immediate concern to United, however, is the Premiership game at home to Blackburn Rovers tomorrow, when victory would open up a nine-point gap at the top, if only for a couple of hours with Chelsea not playing until later in the day against Watford.
While United are still in contention to win the FA Cup and Champions League, Park Ji Sung, the midfield player, wants to help to ensure that the Premiership title returns to Old Trafford after a four-year absence.
“It is possible for us to get the results to succeed in all competitions,” the South Korean said. “But my No 1 target is the Premier League.”
Park did the double of league and cup with PSV in the Netherlands and he believes the experience will hold him in good stead as United’s season enters its critical phase. “I have had a similar experience in the Netherlands,” he said.
“Even if we have bad results, we have to bounce back quickly and concentrate on the next game.”