Manchester United’s move to sign Leny Yoro is official, with the wonderkid completing his move to Old Trafford.
Leny Yoro was presented as a Manchester United player, with sporting director Dan Ashworth hailing Yoro’s outstanding potential.
Yoro’s move comes amid a frenetic week in the transfer window for Manchester United, following the deal for Joshua Zirkzee.
Let’s break down the winners and losers from the big transfer deal…
Winners from Leny Yoro deal
Manchester United’s reputation: This is a huge transfer for ‘brand Manchester United’, who have managed to attract one of the elite young players in European football.
United’s reputation has taken a hit under the Glazer era, summarised neatly by Jude Bellingham snubbing the Red Devils as there was no coherent plan to get him into the first team.
Yoro choosing to sign for United sends a message to the rest of Europe that the club has a coherent strategy in place. He expressed this in his first words a Manchester United player.
United have spent years signing over-the-hill players who are past their best. This will soon be a thing of the past, the club want to attract the best up and coming players, and can actually do so.
Ineos: Let’s have a word for the group responsible for helping to restore Manchester United’s reputation after years of Glazer mismanagement.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos are a serious bunch, bringing top tier talent into the boardroom, and now making good on their pledge to recruit an exciting, talented squad.
United beat serious competition to sign Yoro, from the reigning Champions League winners, and their knowledge of the French market played a big part too. The deal for Yoro is a real statement from Ineos.
Lisandro Martinez: Argentina defender Lisandro Martinez was hailed this week as the best centre-back in world football.
Now he has a super talented centre-back partner, who replaces the one he has just lost, French legend Raphael Varane.
Yoro is younger, more injury-free, and has everything to prove, and he can forge an exciting partnership with ‘The Butcher’. This is great news for Martinez.
- READ MORE: Manchester United confirmed signings, transfers in, out, loan exits, releases for 2024/25
Losers from Leny Yoro deal
Real Madrid: This time Real Madrid’s transfer strategy backfired. Instead of pushing to go and get Leny Yoro and pay Lille’s asking price, they became over-confident, and basically told the defender to come to them.
Lille wanted the money from United and their president convinced Yoro to listen to Manchester United’s proposal. Real are now left looking to try and find alternatives after Yoro decided he liked what he heard from United, the team who proved they wanted him.
This was an own goal from Real Madrid, who have missed out on their next Varane.
Jarrad Branthwaite and Matthijs de Ligt: Manchester United may sign another centre-back, with Jarrad Branthwaite and Matthijs de Ligt on the list. But they may not.
And if either Branthwaite or De Ligt do sign, they will do so in the knowledge they will be third choice behind Martinez and Yoro.
This should still materialise into plenty of game time, but its not the same, and right now both defenders will be panicking that they miss out on signing for Manchester United altogether.
Liverpool: United’s rivals Liverpool had made Leny Yoro their ‘prime target’, but lacked the conviction to really try and do the deal.
Liverpool believed Yoro wanted Real Madrid and they would not be able to change his mind. Manchester United, on the other hand, have the pulling power.
Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire: This is the beginning of the end for United’s old guard, the partnership Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made his first choice in 2019.
It is very likely that one of Victor Lindelof or Harry Maguire leave the club this summer, most likely the Swede.
Maguire is not safe either, and both players will know that if they do stay, they will be mixed in with Jonny Evans as back-ups, with Yoro and Martinez selected to start the really big games that matter.
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