What’s the story?
According to Italian media outlet, Tuttomercatoweb, Manchester United have reportedly signed a pre-contract agreement with Swedish player Victor Lindelof and the player will join his new teammates ahead of the next season.
Reports say that this agreement with the Benfica defender comes despite the fact that Italian club AS Roma tried their level best to hijack the bid. Roma had targeted Lindelof as a potential replacement for Kostas Manolas who is reportedly set to leave Serie A at the end of the ongoing season.
In case you didn’t know...
Manchester United have had a roller coaster season till now. Despite an extremely average start, the Red Devils soon picked up and their performance levels only became better game after game. However, manager Jose Mourinho is still not convinced with the centre-back pairing at the club and if Lindelof comes to Old Trafford, he will in all probability be a part of the starting XI.
Also Read: Transfer Rumour: Chelsea enter race to sign Manchester United target Victor Lindelof
Lindelof has been impressive for Benfica and has already attracted a lot of interest from top clubs like PSG, Barcelona, Chelsea and Roma. The youngster is rated as one of Europe’s best young stoppers and Manchester United will have to shell big money if they want to land him at the club.
The heart of the matter
Manchester United had targeted the Swede in the winter transfer window as well but were unable to get the defender from Benfica’s clutches. Multiple efforts were made to sign the player but ultimately Lindelof stayed back in Lisbon.
Bola also said that although Manchester United have reached a gentlemen’s agreement, they have still not convinced the player entirely. The Red Devils are hopeful that the prospect of Champions League football will entice the defender to make the move to England.
What’s next?
If Manchester United are to woo quality players to the club, they will have to be playing Champions League football. Lindelof is wanted by several clubs and a young, upcoming defender like him will probably want to play in European football and hence will make the decision to move at the end of the season.
Also Read: Scout Report: Victor Lindelof - The Swedish defender Chelsea are desperate to sign
They have shown, though, with the signings of Pogba and Ibrahimovic that even without playing Europe’s elite club competition, they can bring world-class players.
Sportskeeda’s Take
Reports in January said that Mourinho had put off the Lindelof deal till the summer window as he did not want to disrupt the good form of his central defenders. Jones, Bailly, Rojo and Smalling have played well, but haven’t shown the consistency that the likes of Vidic and Ferdinand did 7-8 years ago.
Signing a player – that too from a foreign country – in the January transfer window does not help the team as it would take a player some time to adapt to new conditions and a new team, hence the decision to sign Lindelof in the summer is a good move.
