The injury to Leny Yoro on Sunday morning is a massive blow for Manchester United and shows that additional work must be done at centre-back.
For Manchester United, the centre-back is far and away the biggest priority this summer which we thought had been at least partially solved with the arrival of Leny Yoro.
However, the issue is that now with the injury to Yoro, the lack of quality has once more become clear with Jonny Evans, Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof nowhere near good enough for United to get back to where we desire to be.
So with Yoro out for an undefined length of time, a second centre-back must be signed and it shouldn’t be Matthijs de Ligt.
Here are three players who’d be far better options for United this summer than the injury-prone Dutchman.
Joachim Andersen
This summer, United have already been reported to hold interest in at least three of Oliver Glasner’s finest at Selhurst Park – including Tyrick Mitchell – but the one who hasn’t been linked might be the most obvious deal of all.
Joachim Andersen has been donning the captain’s armband for Crystal Palace this summer thus far, but if United are targetting an additional central defender then surely the Dane should be on the list.
Premier League proven, leadership qualities, excellent technically and physically, and importantly having a solid injury record, Andersen is a clear option to bolster the defensive ranks – not to mention he’s a huge fan of Rasmus Hojlund and would fit in like a glove.
Missing just 14 games in his career to date, with no games missed through injury since 2020, passing up on the chance to sign Andersen would be foolish as he is capable of starting at the very highest level and instantly improving the squad.
Andersen would likely cost in the region of £30m to £40m and earns a weekly wage of £80,000-per-week which would make him a cheap player to have contracted even after a likely pay rise. Palace won’t want to see, but United can make them an offer he can’t refuse and even for around £40m he’d be a bargain thanks to the immense quality he has.
Odilon Kossounou
If Andersen doesn’t appeal to Ineos, perhaps Bayer Leverkusen’s Odilon Kossounou will after he caught many clubs’ eye during the Bundesliga title win last season – among these interested are United.
At 23 years old, Kossounou is younger than Andersen – although less experienced and United will also meet interest from Liverpool if they are to target the Ivory Coast international.
As far as centre-backs go, it’d be tough to find a more creative one than Kossounou, with progressing play being a particular strength of his. This can be seen as he averages 6.77 progressive passes per 90 (98th percentile) and 2.36 progressive carries per 90 (99th percentile).
He’d cost a similar amount to what Andersen might, and he’d be a far more ‘Ineos’ signing, based on what we’ve seen so far. He’d be a risk and with the last Ivorian defender to join United being a nightmare – as much as we loved Eric Bailly – there could be a worry that Kossonou could also flop.
It’s a move which is made unlikely by Yoro, with both wanting to play in the exact same position and still developing, for this reason, Andersen likely edges him in our selection.
Jhon Lucumi
The final name we’ve wanted to flag up is Bologna’s Jhon Lucumi who could be the biggest bargain of the summer for the Red Devils with a believed asking price not too far off £17m.
The Colombian well and truly exploded last season with Thiago Motta’s Bologna and after his defensive partner Riccardo Calafiori departed for Arsenal, he could follow.
An immense tackler along with being very good on the ball, and at progressing play it seems like he’d fit right in at Old Trafford under Erik ten Hag.
Lucumi is a left-footed centre-back which makes him less likely to be a De Ligt alternative, but with the weakness of the back-line being both sides and now, United are a Lisandro Martinez away from an Evans and Maguire backline again to start this season.
- READ MORE: Who is Lisandro Martinez? Step inside the life of Manchester United’s tenacious Argentine
Definitely a player worth United courting if Bologna are willing to sell for as cheap as it had been reported earlier this summer.
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