HJK Helsinki forward Hassane Bandé has explained why he decided to turn down Manchester United in favour of Ajax earlier in his career.
The 24-year-old has been speaking to Voetbal International, relayed by Ajax Showtime, regarding his career so far and the decision to turn down some of the biggest clubs.
Bandé had found himself heavily linked with some of the biggest clubs in Europe back on 2018, when his impressive performances for KV Mechelen had earned him recognition around Europe.
Manchester United were one of those reportedly keen as they eyed signings to develop for the future, as shown by signing of Diogo Dalot from Porto that year.
Rather than turning up at Old Trafford, Bandé ended up joining Ajax in an €8.25m deal that but his time at the club would not be a happy one.
A medial collateral ligament tear coupled with fibula shaft fractures saw him spend a year out of action and 367 days on the treatment table, missing 65 games in the process.
He returned the following year but a falling out with future Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag saw him out of the picture and by 2020 he had been pushed to the U21s.
He now finds himself playing in Finland after a spell in France but seemingly doesn’t regret his choices, insisting there was logic in going to the Netherlands.
“I still had a lot to learn and knew that I would get more opportunities in Amsterdam than at a top club like United,” he said.
“His English wasn’t that good yet and neither was mine. That was a problem,” he added on his relationship with Ten Hag.
“It was hard to accept (the injury). As a new player I wanted to prove myself. I hadn’t even played an official minute yet.”
