Ruben Amorim gives verdict on Manchester United plan to sign former player on free transfer

Ruben Amorim has greenlighted Manchester United’s transfer plan to re-sign Angel Gomes on a free transfer next summer.

The new United boss is set to take charge of his first game this weekend when the Red Devils travel to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town.

Amorim has inherited an expensively assembled squad from Erik ten Hag and has already been warned he will be forced to work with a modest transfer budget.

With that in mind, United’s transfer chiefs, Dan Ashworth and Jason Wilcox, are eyeing potential bargains and believe Gomes represents the ideal candidate to breathe new life intoUnited’s midfield.

According to The Sun, Amorim is a long-term admirer of the 24-year-old whose performances for Lille have been rewarded with senior England international recognition.

Gomes spent a productive season on loan at Boavista in Portugal where he would have caught the eye of his potential new boss.

Gomes said on the chances of a sensational return to Old Trafford last month: “There’ll always be that sentimental soft spot, so of course it’d be difficult to say no.”

Why did Angel Gomes leave Manchester United?

Gomes joined United at the age of just six and was tipped for a big future at Old Trafford as he rose through the club’s academy ranks.

In May 2017, a 16-year-old Gomes made his first-team debut as a replacement for Wayne Rooney against Crystal Palace to become the youngest player to represent the Red Devils since the great Duncan Edwards.

However, Gomes would go on to make just nine more appearances for his boyhood team before completing a move to Ligue 1 outfit Lille four years ago.

‘When I left [Manchester United] it was more for the idea to better myself, better myself as player and obviously as a person going through the journey that I went through,’ Gomes told reporters last month.

‘I knew that eventually I would be able to create a pathway for myself to be able to be in this position that I’m in now.

‘It was difficult obviously leaving the club that I was at from six and heading into the unknown really for me personally.

‘From then it has been an uphill trajectory but also with a lot of difficulties and difficult moments going through. But being in this position now makes everything all worth it.’