Erik ten Hag comments speak volumes as Man United ‘ready swap deal offer’

Manchester United are reportedly prepared to swap new arrival Joshua Zirkzee for Viktor Gyokeres - and Erik ten Hag would likely understand the thinking behind the deal.

Signed from Serie A club Bologna in the summer for £36.5 million, 23-year-old Zirkzee initially looked a shrewd bit of business after scoring on his debut against Fulham. But he hasn't found the back of the net since, raising major doubts about his quality.

Ten Hag, who was dismissed as Red Devils manager and replaced by Sporting CP's Ruben Amorim this month, reportedly had those doubts from day one, and wasn't convinced by the player's lacklustre scoring record. Furthermore, according to The Sun, he was incensed upon discovering Zirkzee was "a stone overweight" when he first showed up at Carrington.

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Publicly, Ten Hag was far less scathing in his criticism, but did hint at a little discontent, stating: "I think we have two young strikers who have the potential to grow into top-class strikers in Ramus Hojlund and Zirkzee."

It's since emerged that United are willing to let Zirkzee leave the club, little more than two months after signing him. According to Caughtoffside, they could offer Zirkzee to Sporting in a player-plus-cash offer for Gyokeres, who has been on fire in the Primeira Liga.

Ten Hag is likely to sympathise with Amorim's pursuit of a proven goalscorer like Gyokeres, particularly after he openly admitted that Zirkzee wasn't a top striker yet. What Amorim thinks of Zirkzee and how much the Dutch striker will play under him this season remains to