Manchester United Interested In Signing French Defender
REUTERS/Charles Platiau
Jose Mourinho has reportedly turned his attention to Barcelona’s Samuel Umtiti after having dropped his plans to sign Raphael Varane from Real Madrid.
Mourinho is still keen on adding more players to his defensive back-line, but the Portuguese has stopped pursuing United’s long-term target Varane, and instead, has shifted his focus to the 23-year-old Umtiti.
The Red Devils have invested heavily to strengthen their defense since former manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign came to an end in 2013. The latest defensive acquisition, in the form of Victor Lindelof, cost United £30.7m, and in spite of a building a squad heavily loaded with defenders, Mourinho is still in the market, looking for more defensive options.
As per Don Balon, the Portuguese tactician, who was interested in bringing in Sergi Roberto this summer, has placed Samuel Umtiti on top of the list of potential defensive targets he would go after in the transfer window.
The Special One is believed to be impressed by the physicality of the Frenchman, and his ability to play at left-back, a position which caused major problems for the Red Devils last season. It was claimed that the former reason has caused the United boss to end his pursuit of Varane, as the 54-year-old thinks that the Real Madrid star is ‘too fragile in the physical portion’.
However, even if Mourinho considers Umtiti a top candidate to switch to Old Trafford, luring him from Barcelona wouldn’t be an easy task.
The defender has been vital for Barca this season, and has massively improved under new manager, Ernesto Valverde. The Catalan giants have conceded just three goals in the nine matches he has played, and currently are in pole position in La Liga.
Written by Sidharth Jindal 
Sports fanatic with a passion for writing (predominantly football) and “Wants to live life to its fullest.” Writes about the Premier League on his personal blog.