Danilo Pereira vs Nemanja Matic – Should Manchester United Go For The Porto Midfielder?
Manchester United are reportedly interested in a January move for £20m Porto defensive midfielder Danilo Pereira. At 26 years of age, the player has been quite influential for the club and has rightfully attracted attention from the Premier League giants. At United, Nemanja Matic has proven to be quite strong ever since he arrived from Chelsea but due to a serious dearth of other players in that position, Jose Mourinho had to resort to playing him day in and day out.
Initially, the manager preferred playing a 4-2-3-1 in the initial stages of the season but with Ander Herrera failing to live up to expectations and Michael Carrick being absent, he had to forego that structure and use Matic as part of a midfield trio on most occasions.
However, if Pereira were to move to Old Trafford, Mourinho could utilise him and the former Chelsea man in the same formation. Doing so would allow the likes of Paul Pogba to play a more advanced role and United have thrived whenever they have played in such a set-up.
That said, is Pereira strong enough to play for United? Let’s take a look at how his stats compare to Matic’s.
Nemanja Matic vs Danilo Pereira
In 29 appearances across competitions for United this season, Matic has not scored goals but he has provided an assist. He has also picked up 4 yellow cards while averaging 0.6 shots per game. He boasts of a healthy pass success-rate of 86.7% and wins about 1.7 aerial duels on an average. He has won a solitary Man-of-the-Match award for the club so far. As far as defensive contributions go, Matic makes an average of 1.7 tackles, 1.8 interceptions and 1.4 clearances a game.
Pereira, on the other hand, has appeared 23 times for Porto across competitions. He has chipped in with 2 goals and 3 assists while averaging 1.3 shots per game. The player has picked up a whopping 7 yellow cards in the process and his pass success-rate stands at 86.6%. Aerially, Pereira is quite strong and wins about 2.5 aerial battles per game. Having won the Man-of-the-match award twice so far, the 26-year-old makes an average of 2.2 tackles, 1.9 interceptions and 1.4 clearances per game.
Verdict
As far as numbers go, Pereira is on par with Matic, if not better. Given a choice, United must most definitely make a move for him. The Serbian’s experience coupled with Pereira’s impact could truly revamp the Red Devils’ performances in the middle. With the January window up and running, this will be the ideal opportunity for Mourinho to further strengthen his side by bringing in the talented midfielder.