Manchester United are said to be interested in Morten Hjulmand, but the midfielder grew up as a big fan of rivals Arsenal and even has a tattoo of their badge on his upper left arm
Morten Hjulmand of Sporting looks on
Morten Hjulmand has been linked with a move to Manchester United
(Image: Diogo Cardoso/Getty Images)
Manchester United have been linked with a move for Morten Hjulmand this summer, with the Sporting captain being considered as a potential alternative to Carlos Baleba. However, Hjulmand grew up as a fan of rivals Arsenal and even has the club's badge tattooed on his left arm.
United have spent big on attacking reinforcements so far, bringing in Benjamin Sesko, Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, while Brighton star Baleba emerged as Ruben Amorim's top midfield target.
However, the Seagulls want more than £100million for Baleba and United are said to have cooled their interest as a result. That has led to them considering a move for Hjulmand, who Amorim knows well from his time in charge of Sporting.
This is despite his love for Arsenal, with Hjulmand telling Portuguese outlet Record last year: "My dad supported Arsenal and we watched games together when we were younger."
It was Amorim who signed Hjulmand for Sporting back in 2023 and the Denmark international has hailed the impact he had on his career. Speaking after Amorim left Sporting for United, Hjulmand said: "It was also difficult for me to hear.
"I was sad that Ruben is leaving me and leaving Sporting. It is a great opportunity. I hope that Ruben is proud of himself for getting an offer like this.
"Of course, Ruben was one of the reasons why I came to Sporting. When you work with Ruben you see a clear picture. That was important when I joined Sporting – first to understand how he plays.
"The way that he manages the team inside the pitch and outside the pitch as well is not like I anything I have seen in my short career. I think Manchester [United] are in good hands with Ruben."
Morten Hjulmand
Hjulmand has an Arsenal tattoo on his left arm(Image: Gualter Fatia, Getty Images)
It remains to be seen whether Hjulmand will reunite with Amorim at Old Trafford and the United boss has previously insisted that he is happy with his existing midfield options. "I'm really happy with our players," Amorim said.
"They are working really well, we have different players for that position, so we are prepared to win any game with our players. Maybe Mason Mount is a player that I think can play in that position if we want something different.
"But then we are going to find out [during] the season. We have players to cope to win games in the Premier League."
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