Shopping Around Europe – Where Should Man United Look?

Let’s be honest – all these transfer rumours are making us bored. It is true, there is just too many stories, too many breaking news and so little actual things going on. Will Matthijs De Ligt come, will De Gea sign a new contract, we have this information, we have that information.

That is all nice and well, but this time we want to do something more interesting. We will be looking where could Man United look for when searching transfer targets across the continent. Here is how this will work. Let’s say Man United will need four signings, in all four lines of the team – goalkeeper, defence, midfield and attack. If we exclude Premier League, there are four remaining leagues that are part of the famous Big Five – Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Bundesliga. And that leaves us with each of the four positions to be “distributed” to the four leagues.

We will try to keep things realistic – no Jadon Sancho and stuff like that. Here are our thoughts.

Goalkeeper: La Liga – Jasper Cillessen – Barcelona

Obviously, goalkeeper is the least needed option at this point, but we had to choose someone and someone realistic. In a case where Man United are unsure of David De Gea’s future, than thinking about CIllessen could be smart. He is second choice at Barcelona and has voiced his desire to leave Camp Nou for a club where he could be starting goalkeeper. He is modern goalkeeper, great with his feet and has a lot of years ahead of him. Also, he would probably be an inexpensive option, too, which is another bonus.

Defender: Bundesliga – Ibrahima Konate – RB Leipzig

Yes, we had the Frenchman Dayot Upamecano on our minds, but that is not realistic at all. However, his compatriot Ibrahima Konate is another talented 20-year-old. His physical presence is great and while has rough edges that need polishing, it is very hard finding a centre-back that is without rough edges.

Of course, Matthijs De Ligt could still potentially end up at Man United, if the media are to be believed, and if that happens, then so much better for the club.

Midfielder: Ligue 1 – Houssem Aouar – Lyon

We often talked about Tanguy Ndombele, a great defensive midfielder for Lyon in the past few years, but Houssem Aouar is someone who is equally important for the French side. He is playing as a central midfielder with a license to roam forwards, something similar to a ‘free eight’. He scored seven and assisted another seven in Ligue 1 this season and he impressed in Champions League too.

Lyon will play Champions League, that is true, but if Man United could land De Ligt, then landing Aouar would be more realistic idea.

Forward: Serie A – Paulo Dybala – Juventus

And we are going out with a bang – Paulo Dybala! I know, I know, you might say this is not so realistic or Dybala would not care playing Europa League or he would be pricey, but hear me out. Juventus are without the coach and a potential chaos could happen in Turin if they do not find a solution soon. Dybala was unhappy prior to Allegri’s departure and if a manager like Sarri comes in and plays without a real number 10, the Argentinian could be ostracized once again. Also, there is the fact Man United have a lot of money and Dybala could reunited with Paul Pogba.

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