Karan Chopra
It is fair to say Manchester United have had a busy yet productive summer transfer window following the appointment of Jose Mourinho as club manager.
The Portuguese has expedited four big transfers, each of which occupies a different position on the pitch. His presence convinced Zlatan Ibrahimović to embrace arguably the biggest challenge of his career, albeit at the age of 34. The Swede enjoyed a stellar season at Paris Saint-Germain, amassing an impressive total of 50 goals in all competitions for the French monopolists and won four league titles during his four-year spell at the club. Out of contract in the summer, Ibrahimović was a free agent and that might prove to be a major coup for United.
Eric Bailly made the switch to England from Villarreal, Henrikh Mkhitaryan was signed from Borussia Dortmund and the biggest transfer story of the summer culminated in Paul Pogba reacquainting himself with the club that let him leave four years ago for an astronomical fee of £89 million.
All that said and done, transfer rumours are never fully quelled when Manchester United are in the limelight and with Mourinho set to trim his squad to avoid alienating certain players from the first team, there might just be a player or two on the Old Trafford giants’ radar, although the former Chelsea boss has reiterated he is happy with the players at his disposal.
Here are three players United may end up signing on deadline day:
1. Jose Fonte (Southampton)
Arguably the pick of the transfer rumours in this regard, Fonte has been linked with a move to Old Trafford in recent days and provides a useful option for Mourinho in defence. The Portuguese centre-back was instrumental in his country’s unprecedented Euro triumph in France in the summer and has attracted the attention of several clubs in the process. At 32, Fonte may not be a regular for United but his experience will come handy for the likes of Eric Bailly and Phil Jones, considering Chris Smalling is still some way off the benchmark.
Southampton boss Claude Puel insisted the veteran was not affected by these rumors although he was annoyed by its timing given his side are due to face United at Old Trafford on 19 August. Should Mourinho & Co. show reasonable interest in Fonte though, they may look to secure his services at a decent price.
2. Fabinho (Monaco)
Monaco’s Brazilian fullback has been identified as a viable transfer target by Jose Mourinho according to several reports. This seems rather unlikely, given the defender’s consistent performances for the French side but with Matteo Darmian rumoured to be on his way out of Old Trafford and Antonio Valencia rendered a risky option given his attacking instincts and defensive vulnerability, United may pursue Fabinho till the final day of the transfer window.
3. Gabriel Barbosa (Santos)
Moving away from the European scene, Santos’ 19 year old forward Gabriel Barbosa has been involved with Brazil in the Olympics in Rio. This hasn’t extinguished speculation regarding his future as the youngster, nicknamed the ‘Next Neymar’ has been targetted by several clubs across Europe, a few of which are Inter Milan, Leicester City, and Juventus. United are reported to have shown interest in the teenage sensation as well and have been monitoring his current situation at Santos. Should they ascertain Barbosa to be the next revelation at Old Trafford, they may go to great lengths to obtain his signature. Some critics view this as a direct response to Manchester City’s acquisition of Gabriel Jesus.
