Ajax increase asking price for Manchester United to sign Lisandro Martinez 

© Provided by Metro Lisandro Martinez wants to join Manchester United (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images) Ajax are now demanding around £52million in total for Manchester United to sign Lisandro Martinez and will not entertain bids with additional add-on payments. The Argentina international is desperate to join the Red Devils and he has twice urged his club to negotiate in good faith with United. However, the Dutch giants have tried to start a bidding war for Martinez’s services between United and Arsenal in order to extract a bigger fee for the 24-year-old. United’s latest bid of around £43m was rejected by Ajax as the club felt the offer was too low and it included £5m of add-ons. © Provided by Metro Martinez is ready to go on strike (Photo by Angelo Blankespoor/Soccrates/Getty Images) Despite the rejection, United felt that they were getting closer to an agreement but Dutch outlet the Telegraaf claim Ajax now want £52m upfront for Martinez. The Amsterdam club will not listen to offers with add-ons and feel that they can get an upfront fee for the centre-back. Erik ten Hag is desperate to sign Martinez and he had hoped to have the defender at the club for the tour of the far-east. United expect to complete the signing of Christian Eriksen on a free transfer this week, while they remain locked in negotiations for Frenkie de Jong. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Jaap Stam makes Lisandro Martinez statement amid Manchester United transfer interest 

Former Manchester United defender Jaap Stam believes that it is possible Erik ten Hag could deploy Ajax ace Lisandro Martinez as a defensive-midfielder, should he seal a move to Old Trafford this summer. United are actively pursuing Martinez's signature and, as revealed by the Manchester Evening News , lodged a £37million bid for his services last week. Arsenal are also highly interested in signing the 24-year-old and are direct competitors to United for his signature. The Argentine international, who can play at centre-back, left-back and in defensive-midfield, scooped Ajax's Player of the Year award last season, playing a key role in helping them win their third Eredivisie title of the Ten Hag era. He spent all season playing at centre-back, forming a solid partnership with fellow United target Jurrien Timber. READ MORE: Manchester United arrive in Thailand for pre-season tour and get huge welcome His versatility could prove to be a very useful tool for United if they manage to convince Ajax into a sale this summer. And for former Reds centre-back Stam, Martinez has the potential to operate as the defensive-midfielder that United desperately crave. "You can clearly see that Ten Hag's approach is to dominate matches and control the opponent's half," Stam explained, as quoted by Sport Witness.

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