Ajax sporting director, Edwin van der Sar, has revealed they rejected an offer from Arsenal for Lisandro Martinez before the defender joined Manchester United.
Martinez joined United in a £46.5million move in the summer.
But Ajax CEO Van der Sar says that he could have ended up at Arsenal at one point.
“Arsenal came earlier for Lisandro, but it was an amount where we said: ‘Thank you very much for the offer, but we’d rather keep the player than start negotiating’,” he told The Athletic.
“With United, it was a little bit different. Over the years we have had a few conversations: Daley Blind, Donny van de Beek. My job is making sure I make the best decisions for Ajax.”
Martinez has been a standout performer at Old Trafford since reuniting with his former Ajax manager Erik ten Hag. The Argentina international has started all 14 of his side’s Premier League matches this term and was recently compared to Red Devils legend Nemanja Vidic.
