Manchester United, Besiktas and Burnley have signed all the necessary paperwork for Wout Weghorst to complete his loan move to Old Trafford, according to Fabrizio Romano.
Weghorst emerged as a shock target for Erik ten Hag following talisman Cristiano Ronaldo’s contract termination late last year during the Qatar World Cup.
The deal was complicated by the fact that the striker was already on loan at Besiktas from Burnley and the Championship outfit made it clear United had to find an agreement with the Turkish side if a deal was to be agreed.
Besiktas gave the green light for Weghorst to fly to England from Istanbul airport on Thursday afternoon in order to undergo his medical with United after a deal was agreed between all parties.
Romano claims that Man Utd will pay Besiktas a £2.5m [€3m] loan fee to sign the striker on loan for the remainder of the season, after his loan from Burnley was terminated. The agreement doesn’t include any option or obligation to make the move permanent.
The Italian journalist says that all documents between Man Utd, Besiktas and Burnley have been ‘signed’ and the medical will take place in Manchester within the next 24 hours.
United will cover all of Weghorst’s wages and they are now facing a race against time to get the Dutch international registered in time to feature against Man City this weekend. The player needs to be registered with the FA by midday on Friday to be eligible for the derby.
Our View
Weghorst is the type of player that United currently needs. The Dutchman has been in fine form this season, having scored eight goals and registered four assists in his 16 appearances for Besiktas. In fact, in what appeared to be his last game for the Turkish giants, he found the back of the net before waving the fans an emotional goodbye.
Weghorst, at 6ft 6in, is dominating physically and is a hard worker off the ball. Last season, with Burnley in the Premier League, the 29-year-old managed to average 48.7 presses per game, the highest by any player in the entire division.
Therefore, he should fit into ten Hag’s system well and will give the Man Utd boss a different option up front, which could prove pivotal in the race for Champions League qualification this season.
