Opinion: Man Utd should steer clear of £45m target who they ‘are preparing’ bid for

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Manchester United’s interest in Jordan Pickford continues to heat up, but we personally believe they should steer way clear of Everton’s goalkeeper.

The rumours began last week when TalkSport reported that Manchester United will be interested in securing Pickford’s signature, even if David De Gea stays.

This certainly raised a few questions and also some doubt from fans as to if this was simply a fabricated rumour.

However, the Daily Star has backed up United’s interest in the 29-year-old. They even claim that the club ‘are preparing’ a £45m bid for him in the coming weeks.

Surely Jordan Pickford isn’t the answer…

First off, let’s just state that Jordan Pickford is by no means a bad goalkeeper. The England international has been superb almost every time he’s played for his country and was a major factor in Everton’s Premier League survival.

However, Manchester United having just obtained a Champions League spot, has fought for numerous forms of silverware and are looking to build a team of superstars who can compete with the big dogs… come on?

Jordan Pickford would be fine, but is it necessarily an upgrade on David De Gea? The England keeper is a lot more vocal and commanding in his area, but as a shot-stopper – it’s David De Gea all week.

The cost? Really?

You may say, Pickford would be a great option to challenge David De Gea, but for the reported price? Not a chance.

£45m is ludicrous for a 28-year-old who nearly got relegated this season. You could spend an extra £15m and acquire the likes of Diogo Costa or Mike Maignan.

They could even bag someone for less in David Raya, who’s been heavily linked to Tottenham Hotspur to replace Hugo Lloris. There are plenty of options to go at.

All these keepers are younger and arguably more talented. It’s baffling to see this materialise from a fan’s perspective and looks like a step in the wrong direction.

The stats don’t lie

Here are some stats from the 22/23 season, as soured from FCTables.

Granted, Pickford was playing in a much weaker team with a much worse defence, but the most worrying stat on there has to be completed passes.

One of the main reasons United are looking to part ways is De Gea is his distribution. He was incredibly infuriating over the majority of the season and particularly bad in the FA Cup final where he lost the ball a monumental amount of times.

The fact Pickford comes out worse in this is very telling and shows that this may not even be an upgrade whatsoever.

So, with this – Manchester United… please don’t spend a lot of our precious wage budget on mediocrity.