Manchester United continue to make inquiries about Toby Alderweireld and Tottenham keep giving the Red Devils the same response.
Tottenham fans remain concerned that Toby Alderweireld will leave them for Manchester United this summer. If that happens, it’s going to require a serious concession by Ed Woodward and company. Spurs continue to insist that Anthony Martial be included in any potential deal for their Belgian defender.
To date, United continue to insist they won’t agree to such an arrangement. They’re happy to spend big money on Alderweireld but they view including Martial as a bridge too far. Woodward and the rest of the higher-ups at Old Trafford would much prefer to send him abroad this summer.
Curiously, it seems that Jose Mourinho is more than happy to let his French winger go anywhere he likes. The United manager (and his giant ego) believe that Martial is overrated and he won’t be all that successful no matter where he goes.
Woodward has a very different opinion. He is clearly frightened that Martial will move to North London and blossom into a world-class attacker. That would leave egg all over the collective face of United’s board room.
United claim they aren’t focused on just Alderweireld. You can safely expect the club to be rumoured with quite a few centre backs over the next week or two. It’s all nonsense. Mourinho wants Alderweireld and he’ll be highly upset with Woodward if the deal doesn’t get done.
That will leave United with two choices. They can either continue to throw more and more money at Spurs in an attempt to sway Daniel Levy, or they will relent to including Martial in the deal. It will be very interesting to see if the former is a realistic option.
Tottenham made a controversial decision to sell Kyle Walker to Manchester City last summer and some fans still haven’t forgiven Levy for strengthening a league rival. Alderweireld is an even better player than Walker is. Selling him to the team just above Spurs in the table could start a riot inside the club’s passionate fan base.
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That’s why the smart money is backing Tottenham to hold their position in these negotiations. Mourinho has a history of getting what he wants from United. Spurs don’t want to be perceived as weak by their supporters. Add those factors together and it looks like Manchester United will be forced to capitulate on the issue of Martial sooner, rather than later.