Van der Sar details how United beat Arsenal to sign Lisandro Martinez

Former Man United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar who is currently the Ajax CEO has recently talked about how the Lisandro Martinez deal with United went down and why Arsenal were not successful in signing the defender.

Both Arsenal and

were looking for a left-footed defender this summer and while Arsenal finally got Zinchenko, there were rumblings, early in the transfer window that the Gunners were in for then-Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez.

Van der Sar recently admitted to the Athletic that there was in fact a bid from Arsenal for Martinez but he went on to elaborate why that deal fell through:

“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 then talked about Manchester United’s approach, saying:

“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."

While

have brushed off the Martinez snub with Zinchenko seeming like a much more better fit for Arteta’s side, Martinez has continued to become one of United’s best players this season, starting all 14 of his games for Manchester United.

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