2 key positions Man United need to strengthen in January to boost their top-4 hopes

Two Positions where United need to strengthen in the January window

Manchester United finished second in the league last season, behind Manchester City, and failed to win a single trophy. However, there was some clear-cut progress on display. For the first time in 6 years since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson, the Red Devils crossed the 80-point mark. In the two years that Mourinho has been in charge, the club has reached the final of the FA Cup, won the Europa League and the EFL Cup.

To take the next step of mounting a serious title challenge, United are required to strengthen their squad this summer. However, the club could muster only two signings – Brazilian midfielder Fred and young Portuguese right-back Diogo Dalot.

Hence, we look at the two key areas where Manchester United need to strengthen in January to improve their squad.

Centre-back

One position that Man United need to strengthen the most is central defence. As per reports in the Express, Toby Alderweireld was strongly linked with a switch to Old Trafford but the transfer didn’t materialise. In the recent defeats against Brighton and Spurs, the mistakes made by Eric Bailly, Victor Lindelof, Chris Smalling was just an indication of why Mourinho wanted Alderweireld.

The Red Devils have the best goalkeeper in the world in David de Gea, and he is looking toothless at times just because the defensive line is crumbling. To challenge for the Premier League title, a world-class centre-back is needed.

The 29-year-old Alderweireld was a perfect match as he had the experience of the Premier League and was more than capable of guiding young guns like Lindelof and Bailly. United can still go and get him in the January transfer window for the latter stages of the Premier League.

Right-wing

Another position of weakness that got exposed in the recent defeats was the right-wing. This is a position that has been United’s Achilles heel for many years now. They bought Di Maria in 2014 to fill that spot but the Argentine couldn’t take that chance.

Since then, United have got in the likes of Memphis Depay, Anthony Martial, Alexis Sanchez etc, however, all of them being preferred left-sided players. For that reason, Mourinho has played the likes of Mata and Lingard on the right-wing, but it doesn’t seem to work as they both love to operate as a No.10.

Read More: Three candidates to replace Jose Mourinho if he gets sacked – including this former Manchester United superstar

According to Sun, Croatian duo of Ivan Perisic and Ante Rebic was linked to Manchester United. Jose Mourinho could do with a pacy right-winger, who can beat a full-back and deliver a cross in the box for the likes of Romelu Lukaku. The issue wasn’t resolved in the summer but the January window will give another chance to Ed Woodward.