It is still hard getting used to the new summer transfer window. August has just started and the clubs already have to finish up all their work. Manchester United are no different and the Devils are still on three signings they made this summer – Lee Grant, Fred and Diogo Dalot. So, will the club sign another player, preferably a centre-back, before the 5pm BST on Thursday?
If you are paying attention to all the transfer talk in the media, Man United are still in the race for several defenders and one of those deals should finally happen this Thursday. But how realistic any of those are right now? Will United need to overpay? And who those players could be?
Toby Alderweireld
The most obvious choice for this article is Toby Alderweireld. The Belgian has been linked with a move to Manchester for so long now we do not even remember when the whole thing started. Yet, this is a very doable transfer. Sure, Manchester United would have to pay some decent sum for him, but they would have to do that anyway.
The problem is that Tottenham do not want to sell Alderweireld until they have signed a new centre-back themselves. With the window being in the last 24 hours for some time now, it is hard seeing this will happen. However, Spurs could be thinking about investing most of that money in some possible target they had from before or just keep the money they will not get next summer when player’s contract will run out. The idea of Alderweireld joining United seems like a logical step for all sides, but Spurs are the ones hard-bargaining.
Kurt Zouma
This is an unexpected story that started on Wednesday. The French L’Equipe have been writing about Manchester United contacting Chelsea in regards to loaning out Kurt Zouma. Their story goes that United have already started talking with the Blues, but that they are very uncertain of letting the player to a rival club. That part makes sense, as Nemanja Matic moved from Stamford Bridge to Old Trafford and both teams felt changes since – United positive one and Chelsea not so positive ones.
The deal would be a season-long loan that would solve United’s solution to some extent. First this would be a short-term fix until the club figure out what they really want. And second, Zouma is not really a player that will considerably improve United. This would mostly feel like a panic deal.
Harry Maguire
Well of course it is him. There was a big chance you would be reading here about Jerome Boateng, but the German has chosen to play for PSG and it seems that the French club will pay 45 million euros for his services. That leaves us with Harry Maguire. It looks like there are only slim chances of Manchester United getting him just day before the match against Leicester City.
Not that the fixture would be the reason, surely, but it seems that Leicester are asking too much of Man United right now. However, yesterday we talked about what we learned from this window and one of the things was that it could make English clubs overpay players in urgency to get someone before the ball is kicked. And that is why United might just break the bank for the English international.
man united need to sin savic from lazio and musa dembelle from barcelona
United must sign defender if they want to compute with man city and liverpool