It has undoubtedly been an impressive season of progress for Manchester United under Erik ten Hag, with the Dutchman having guided his side to Carabao Cup glory and secured Champions League qualification courtesy of a third place finish.
That success – which could well be added to in Saturday's FA Cup final – has come despite the shortcomings of the Red Devils' forward line, with emerging talisman, Marcus Rashford having largely carried the goalscoring burden on his own after bagging 30 goals in all competitions thus far – 17 more than any of his teammates.
The likes of Jadon Sancho and summer signing, Antony have both failed to offer a consistent threat on the flanks, with the pair having netted just seven and eight goals, respectively, across all fronts to date.
Those shortcomings have sparked the search for a new forward addition ahead of next season, with United believed to have identified a whole host of targets to potentially lead the attack in the comings.
As per Manchester Evening News, one such target who is believed to be admired by Ten Hag is Ajax sensation, Mohammed Kudus, with the versatile ace – who previously played under the 53-year-old in Amsterdam – offering the versatility to feature on the flanks or in a central role if required.
Valued at roughtly £40m, according to The Athletic, the Ghanaian starlet looks likely to move on from the Johan Cruyff Arena this summer, with there seemingly more than a small chance that the 22-year-old could reunite with Ten Hag in Manchester.
Should Man United sign Kudus?
While the former Nordsjaelland man could prove a possible solution to United's centre-forward woes, the flexible ace could also prove an upgrade on the current options on the flanks, helping to offer strong competition to the aforementioned Antony on the right wing.
A fellow left-footer like his former teammate, Kudus has caught the attention following a standout season in the Netherlands despite Ajax's collectives woes, having scored 18 goals and provided six assists in 42 games in all competitions.
That includes a tally of six goal involvements in just six Champions League appearances, with the 5 foot 9 speedster proving himself capable of making the difference at the highest level.
While Man United's Brazilian trickster also contributed six goal involvements in seven Champions League outings for Ajax in 2021/22, Dutch legend Marco van Basten has previously stated that Kudus is "much better than Antony", with the 23-cap international said to be "smarter and more technical" than his ex-colleague.
Also hailed as "more fun to watch" by Van Basten, it is Kudus who appears to have the greater knack for beating opponents with ease having averaged 4.57 successful take-ons per 90 across the last 365 days, as per FBref, while Antony has averaged just 1.63 in that time.
Of course, Kudus could well follow in the latter man's footsteps and also endure a difficult transition to life in England, although the claims of Van Basten – as well as his statistical brilliance – would seem to suggest that the Ghana star can be an upgrade on the £200k-per-week enigma.
