There will be plenty of attention on Pau Torres when Manchester United take on Villarreal in the Europa League final on May 26.
The Spanish international defender has been linked with the Red Devils for over a year [TV2] and the transfer rumours continued as recently as this March, with The MEN reporting Torres would be open to a United move.
He will have to put this aside for the upcoming game with United, as the two teams do battle for the Europa League trophy.
Torres was quoted by TMW after Villarreal’s goalless draw against Arsenal which earned a 2-1 aggregate win.
He said: “Tonight I cry tears of emotion instead of disappointment. Villarreal have lost many chances in the semi-finals but now we are finally in the final. We did it! These are exciting moments. Everyone deserves it: the club, the fans, the president, last year’s team, all of us. It’s time to have fun but it’s important to get ready for the final right away because it’s a historic opportunity.
“Now Manchester? We will face a great team that will surely make things very complicated for us. We didn’t want both European finals to be entirely English. It is fantastic that Villarreal will represent Spanish football in a European final.”
Torres’ Villarreal did not concede a single goal from open play in the semi-final, with Arsenal’s sole goal coming from the penalty spot.
This highlights Torres and Villarreal’s defensive quality, and he is certainly keen to make the most of his opportunity. Any aspirations towards United he has, will be firmly put to one side.
Scouting opportunity
United’s coaching staff will have a chance to run the rule over Torres first-hand in Gdansk.
Hopefully he does not have too good a game, and he has a good body of work from the season as a whole from which United can also judge.
United also have to consider whether the club still need a new centre-back in Torres’ price range, after Eric Bailly renewed his deal at Old Trafford.
Most likely it will be Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof in defence for United, while at the other end, Torres will have to try and shut down an in-form Edinson Cavani. If he manages to, then perhaps he may be worth shelling out for.
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