Manchester United and Erik ten Hag might have been dealt a blow in Ajax transfer efforts

Manchester United have already been able to lure Erik ten Hag from Ajax and now the club want to reunite him with some of his former players. The Manchester Evening News understands that Jurrien Timber and Antony are of interest and United could look to bring them both in this summer.

However, United have been locked in negotiations with Barcelona over a deal for Frenkie de Jong for the past few weeks, and though they hope to move away from their one-at-a-time transfer strategy in the long term, they will be unable to do so this summer. This has led to many fans becoming frustrated as United are yet to complete a deal.

And with the De Jong stalemate rolling on, Ajax have only strengthened their negotiating position. The Dutch giants' usual transfer strategy is to sell a few players and then replace them with cheaper options who in turn will increase in value and then be sold.

READ MORE: Jurrien Timber agent reveals he's in Manchester 'for work' in new Man United transfer twist

Ajax, of course, do not want to completely rip up their team and have already seen Ryan Gravenberch and Noussair Mazraoui join Bayern Munich this summer. Sebastien Haller is also expected to leave and join Borussia Dortmund after the two clubs agreed a fee, and Nicolas Tagliafico could also move elsewhere.

This will give them the money they need to sign Brian Brobbey permanently from RB Leipzig and most likely Steven Bergwijn from Tottenham Hotspur, who they wanted to sign under Ten Hag in January. They, therefore, do not need to sell anyone else and this will likely reflect in the prices they demand for their remaining stars.

United had already hit a stumbling block in their pursuit of Timber. Louis van Gaal has suggested that a potential move to