Recent reports have emerged linking Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United with a sensational big money move for AS Roma defender Antonio Rudiger, who is also wanted by Premier League leaders Chelsea. The 23-year old had been outstanding in his debut season for the Italians and his performances seem to have caught the eye of the two English giants, who are now set to go head to head in an attempt to lure the German to their team.
United are also close to signing defender Victor Lindelöf according to latest reports, so it does lead to question the Red Devils’ need for another centre-half given they already have plenty of options in that position. Do United really need him? And if they do bring him in, will there be an exit for someone from the Old Trafford? We analyze;
Antonio Rudiger has been a solid performer over the past year for Roma, who he joined ahead of the 2015-16 season on loan, from VfB Stuttgart, where at a young age, he had established himself as one of the key players and made the move permanent this year. Despite serious injuries over the past two years, Rudiger has bounced back and continued his development as one of the most promising centre-halves of current times.
Having suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury ahead of the European Championships held this year, Rudiger missed most of the early part of the season for Roma. He returned to action late in October and has played in every Serie A game for the Giallorossi since then and has missed just one Europa League game since his return. And he has shown fine form in his 8 Italian top-flight appearances, averaging 5 defensive actions per game and executing 9 successful tackles out of his 18 attempts.
Standing 6ft 3in tall, Rudiger is physically very imposing and offers a huge threat from set-pieces and is also adept at distributing the ball out of the back with great accuracy as indicated by the 83% pass success-rate this season for Roma. And the versatility that he offers, with his ability to play at both right-back and left-back apart from his primary position of centre-back, make him a great asset to have.
Despite missing a good part of the season, Rudiger’s numbers are quite respectable and he has shown that he has the pedigree to do well at the top level and will be a good fit in the Premier League.
But United are already well equipped in the centre-halves’ department. Chris Smalling has returned from injury and featured in the last minutes of the Mancunians’ last game against West Brom. Smalling has established himself as a leader of the defence and apart from a poor outing at Stamford Bridge he has been largely solid so far. Summer signing Eric Bailly has caught everyone’s eye with his excellent displays at the back and will be a regular feature post his return from injury.
And in the absence of Smalling and Bailly, Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo have stepped up admirably and have been brilliant for United. Jones, returning from injuries, has looked like the player who was touted to be the next Nemanja Vidic whereas Rojo is enjoying his best form in his two years at United. Throw into the mix the solidity that Daley Blind brings in and Lindelöf’s imminent arrival, after Benfica manager Rui Vitoria hinted that the move might go through, Manchester United do not really need Rudiger at the moment.
However, if they do persist with the transfer, it would seem most likely that Daley Blind will be the one who will be shown the exit. The Dutchman has struggled to break into the team in recent weeks after a great start to the season with Jones and Rojo the current preferred centre-back pairing and Matteo Darmian played over him at left-back. Blind has been a consistent performer for the Red Devils ever since his move in 2014, but if Rudiger does arrive, he will be the one who is most likely to be forced out from Old Trafford.
While there are no doubts over Rudiger’s talents and potentials, United already are spoilt for riches in defence with some world-class options and full internationals at their disposal. And with the German himself claiming earlier that a move to England isn’t of interest for him, Jose Mourinho would be better off investing the funds in other areas of the field.