Erik ten Hag instructs Manchester United to beat Barcelona and Arsenal to £50m Ruben Neves transfer

Erik ten Hag has instructed Manchester United to beat Barcelona and Arsenal to a deal for Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves, according to reports.

Ten Hag has been in the Old Trafford hot-seat for less than a week but has already identified a number of targets ahead of this summer’s transfer window.

The Dutch coach, who won the Eredivisie with Ajax last season, wants to sign a new striker, midfielder and centre-back and has identified Neves as a top target.

Portugal international Neves has made more than 200 appearances for Wolves and been one of the key players at Molineux since his £16m move from Porto in 2017.

Manchester United first expressed interest in signing Neves while Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was in charge and considered a move for the 25-year-old in January.

The Sun say Ten Hag has told United to revive their interest, with the Premier League giants now set to make a final push to secure a deal.

Wolves valued Neves at around £40m at the start of the year but now want close to £50m for the Portuguese star.

His contract at the Midlands club runs until 2024 but Neves has shown a reluctance to sign a new deal as he look to secure a big move.

Barcelona are also in the running to sign Neves and can offer him Champions League football unlike United, while Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is believed to be a fan and keen to bring him to the Emirates.

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Speaking after Wolves’ final game of the season, Neves suggested he would be open to leaving the club this summer.

He said: ‘The only thing I can tell you at the moment is that everyone knows what football is about, what our lives are about. Our career is really short and we need to take