Why Van de Beek may torpedo Zakaria's move to Man Utd

FT Desk
FT Desk
  • 20 Jan 2022 17:55 GMT
  • 5 min read
Man Utd transfer news: Zakaria edges towards Gladbach exit
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One of the most talked about players in the January transfer window so far has undoubtedly been Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Denis Zakaria.

The Switzerland international has long been one of the most sought-after stars in the Bundesliga and with his contract set to expire at the end of the season, it seems all but certain that Zakaria will depart the Foals for a bigger club in Germany or England.

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Both Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich have been heavily linked with the defensive midfielder, but so too have Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United.

However, while it’s perfectly plausible that Zakaria could end up at any of these distinguished and well-financed clubs, it seems as though one minor point may push the player beyond a move to Old Trafford.

The problem with Zakaria and Man Utd

One issue with Man Utd’s reported efforts to sign Zakaria is that the player’s agent, Hasan Cetinkaya, already has plenty of dealings with the Old Trafford side and may not be entirely encouraging about the prospect of another player making the move to Manchester.

Cetinkaya’s company, HCM Sports Management, already represents Man Utd players Donny van de Beek and Victor Lindelof, who both made huge moves to the Red Devils in recent years only to then find themselves stuck in a constant churn of squad rotations and managerial upheaval.

Although little has been said about either Van de Beek or Lindelof’s futures at the Old Trafford club, it seems unlikely that either player would be sending back entirely glowing recommendations about any player making the move to Man Utd.

Whether that would be enough to put Zakaria off a move to Man Utd or whether Cetinkaya would discourage the midfielder from making the move to the club is entirely unknown, but the Old Trafford side may have to do some extra convincing to make sure the Gladbach star doesn’t think he’d simply become another back-up player at the club.

Read more about: Bundesliga, Gladbach, Denis Zakaria

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