Manchester United are closing in on Lisandro Martinez.

Having made a worryingly slow start to the summer transfer window despite embarking upon a new era under Erik ten Hag, the Red Devils finally seem to be wrapping up their business ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.

United recently got their first signing through the door in the form of Tyrell Malacia from Feyenoord and it looks for all intents and purposes as though Christian Eriksen will soon follow in his footsteps.

Man Utd close in on Martinez

But with neither player guaranteed to slot immediately into Ten Hag's starting XI, the Old Trafford patrons have been far more invested in the transfer sagas that could change their fortunes overnight.

One of those, of course, is the never-ending hunt for Frenkie de Jong from Barcelona that finally seems to be moving in the right direction and the other sees Ten Hag angling for one of his former Ajax stars.

With the trail for Jurrien Timber having gone cold at the start of the window, United are now going all in for a different Ajax centre-back in the form of Argentina international Martinez.

While the 24-year-old has been one of many players to be bounded around the United rumour mill in recent weeks, the last few days have seen swift developments that now leave us on the brink of official confirmation.

"De Jong agrees to join Man Utd!" (Football Terrace)

What can Martinez offer Man Utd?

On Thursday, talkSPORT reported that the Premier League giants had agreed a £46 million fee with Ajax, even claiming that he will join up with Ten Hag and the players on their pre-season tour this weekend.

Marry that to Fabrizio Romano reporting that Martinez to United is 'imminent' as well as Sky Sports declaring that a move is in its final stages, and you can forgive the Old Trafford faithful for starting to get excited.

And you know that there's palpable anticipation surrounding a big signing when YouTube starts to become awash with all the 'Welcome to' videos showing highlights of the new player to heady dance music.

Funnily enough, the same can be said for Martinez's impending United transfer, but there are some diamonds amongst the rough that is cookie-cutter montages we've all seen done over and over again.

Soccer Football - Champions League - Group C - Ajax Amsterdam v Sporting Lisbon - Johan Cruijff ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands - December 7, 2021 Ajax Amsterdam's Lisandro Martinez in action with Sporting Lisbon's Bruno Tabata REUTERS/Piroschka Van De Wouw

Not only is there fascinating footage showing Martinez going head-to-head with Erling Haaland and Darwin Nunez, but there's also a brilliant compilation showing off one of the centre-back's most impressive skills of all.

As a versatile and multi-faceted operator who can also play at left-back and even in defensive midfield, Martinez happens to have honed his passing skills far more than your average centre-half.

Martinez's brilliant passing range

So much so, in fact, that a video titled: "Have you seen any CB that pass[es] the ball like Lisandro Martinez?" has amassed almost 200,00 views over the last 10 days in anticipation of a move to United.

Released by YouTuber MUFC Zone, the exciting four-minute edit shows that Martinez packs an absolute ping in his left foot, firing off the sort of penetrating diagonal balls that can instantly cut a defence in half.

It really is enough to make United fans rub their hands in anticipation of a modern centre-back that could fit hand in glove with their new direction under Ten Hag, so be sure to check out the video for yourself down below:

Fan reaction

Very promising signs for Man Utd

Ping, ping, ping, ping, ping. You love to see it.

As unpopular as it might seem to say amongst a digital room of United fans, you can't help seeing the same style - that's the key word there, folks - of positive defending that you get from Virgil van Dijk.

No, we're not saying that he's anywhere near that standard and yes, many of the clips are from Eredivisie matches, but there is a similarity in that forward-thinking focus on progressing the ball incisively and directly when relevant.

And the proof is in the statistics, too, with FBref showing that Martinez is in the 99th percentile for assists, shot-creating actions, passes attempted and progressive passes compared to other centre-backs over the last year.

Soccer Football - Champions League - Group H - Ajax Amsterdam v Valencia - Johan Cruijff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands - December 10, 2019 Valencia's Kevin Gameiro in action with Ajax Amsterdam's Lisandro Martinez REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw

Of course, we'll only know how good of a signing Martinez truly is when he's established himself in the Premier League, but there's no denying that he passes - terrible pun intended - the test so far.