Why Manchester United signing Ricardo Pereira would be a wasteful move
According to French outlet Le10 Sport (h/t Daily Star), Manchester United are interested in signing Ricardo Pereira.
The report suggests that Leicester City have no intention of selling their highly-rated right-back in January and therefore, United will have to wait until the summer to make their move.
Pereira, 26, joined the Foxes in the summer of 2018 from FC Porto after he completed his two-year loan spell in France with OGC Nice. He was voted Leicester’s Player of the Year last season and was one of the most important members in helping them finish in 9th position at the end of the previous campaign.
He has established himself as one of the best right-backs in England after scoring twice and further setting up 7 more last season. His defensive traits have also improved since moving to the East Midlands and has shown signs of continuing at the highest level.
Pereira’s performances for club and country have attracted the attention of top European teams including Ligue 1 outfit Paris Saint-Germain and a host of unnamed Serie A clubs in Italy, according to the report.
Meanwhile, Manchester United are trying to lure the Portuguese to Old Trafford at the earliest but this move may not prove to be successful.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer already has three players available in this position – Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Diogo Dalot and Timothy Fosu-Mensah, all of whom are natural right-backs. Apart from them, Axel Tuanzebe and Ashley Young have also done equally well when deployed in this spot.
After the departure of Antonio Valencia, the Norwegian manager spent £50m to rope in Wan-Bissaka, despite having Dalot in the squad. And this decision has been outstanding so far.
The youngster has done a marvellous job and against Manchester City, he constantly got the better of Raheem Sterling.
Though Pereira has proven to be better than most of the Red Devils’ wing-backs, it would get really tough to fit the Portuguese into the squad when the existing players return from injury.
Keeping hold of many players for a particular position would put Solskjaer in trouble and it would be a waste of resources for the club’s hierarchy.
The 26-year-old has taken huge strides in his career and if he leaves the King Power to join the Red Devils, he might not be guaranteed with a starting place due to the emergence of Wan-Bissaka. This would also jeopardize his selection in the national team if he doesn’t get regular game time at club level.
Read more
- Why Manchester United signing Jude Bellingham would be good for future
- Why Miranchuk could offer Manchester United more creativity in the attack
- Why Manchester United have missed a trick by not signing Mandzukic
Verdict
Instead of trying to bring in wing-backs, Solskjaer must use the allotted funds to strengthen other positions that need improvement, especially the attacking department, which continues to be without an experienced player.
Therefore, it would be wise by United to keep their eyes off Pereira and continue to develop the bunch of players they have.