Ajax forward names three European giants as dream destinations for €80m summer move

Ajax striker Brian Brobbey has shared his ambition to seal a transfer to Manchester United, Arsenal or Real Madrid in the near future, claiming he could be worth as much as €80m (£69m) with a strong showing for Netherlands at Euro 2024 this summer.

Brobbey has scored 17 times in 26 Eredivisie appearances so far this season, an achievement made more impressive by Ajax losing five successive games in October and entering crisis mode.

"I'm about to blossom," the player told Men's Health NL, featuring on the magazine's latest cover.

"If I see myself and how I have played in the last few months, I think I am doing quite well. I still want to achieve many great things in my career, such as playing for a very big football club.

"Real Madrid is a beautiful club. Arsenal, Manchester United. How much am I worth? After the European Championship…€80m. Going to the European Championship is also a dream of mine.

"If I can score a goal, I promote myself even more and increase my value. If I succeed, I'm doing well. I have to score that goal. I want to pay Ajax back. Of course I left, but they brought me back. I want to make sure I have been worth it."

Interest from Manchester United began as soon as the Old Trafford club appointed Erik ten Hag in the summer of 2022. At that time and not long out of his teenage years, Brobbey was finishing up a loan with Ajax after a 2021 transfer to RB Leipzig had quickly soured. But he had worked with Ten Hag in first spell in Amsterdam upon breaking through and the boss was keen to reunite.

In the end, a permanent transfer back to Ajax was completed instead. United interest has continued ever since, with Ten Hag noted for a track record of recruiting players with whom he is personally familiar – such as Lisandro Martinez and Antony.

However, since spending big money on Rasmus Hojlund last summer, the role of young striker with potential has been filled. That has rendered an approach for Brobbey now less likely, with United preferring to bring in a more experienced forward to complement and support Hojlund. That is where is 35-year-old Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting had come into the thinking.

Arsenal are also believed to be in the market for a goalscorer, while Real Madrid are expected to bring in Kylian Mbappe but won't pay a transfer fee for the superstar Frenchman.

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