da pinnacle： According to Spanish paper Sport, Jose Mourinho is desperate to sign Samuel Umtiti.
What’s the word?
da dobrowin： The 24 year-old, valued at £36million by Transfermarkt, has gone from strength to strength since joining Barcelona from Lyon in 2016, and is rumoured to be one of Mourinho’s main targets for the summer.
The Red Devils have also been heavily linked with Real Madrid’s Varane, so it is clear Mourinho is interested in adding another centre back.
The report from Sport claims the Portuguese manager is in constant contact with the player’s brother and agent, Yannick Umtiti.
Would he be the right choice?
There is no doubt Manchester United need to add another centre back. Daley Blind is on his way out, Phil Jones is injury prone, and Chris Smalling just isn’t very good. Eric Bailly has had his own problems with injuries, but the hope is that a big money signing could compete with Bailly and Victor Lindelöf for the starting positions.
Umtiti is certainly a good player, but if it were a choice between the Barcelona man and Varane, then the Madrid star is a better option. Umtiti’s ball playing skills fit right in at Barcelona, but he is relatively small for a centre back, especially a Premier League centre back. Jose Mourinho in particular is a big fan of having plenty of height in his teams, so Varane might be a better fit.
Umtiti is also loved at Barcelona, so could be very costly to lure away from the Catalan club. While Varane is highly respected in Madrid, a summer clear-out at the club could mean players like the towering Frenchman are available for a reasonable price.
Manchester United fans, would you prefer Umtiti or Varane? Let us know in the comments below…