Rijo Sam Daniel
Agent confirms Manchester United interest in Stuttgart midfielder Orel Mangala
According to United based news account mufcmpb (h/t The Express), Manchester United have expressed their interest in securing the services of Stuttgart midfielder Orel Mangala as per his agent. Mehmet Eser, his representative, has confirmed the matter with the English club, looking at options to address their midfield issues.
Man United are searching the market for a defensive midfielder as Nemanja Matic is set to leave Old Trafford this summer. Frenkie de Jong of Barcelona is their main target, but they are also shortlisting alternatives if they fail to get their primary option. Mangala is identified as one of the choices, and he could be available in the market, having already confirmed his departure at the end of this season.
Mangala’s intentions do favour the Red Devils if they decide to go down the route to complete a move for him. Furthermore, the Belgian international could be signed for a fee in the region of £13million in the future, which seems to be a massive opportunity looking at his quality.
Who is Orel Mangala?
A defensive midfielder by trade, the 24-year-old is also capable of playing anywhere in the centre of the pitch, which would be a great asset indeed for Erik ten Hag. Mangala has featured in 29 Bundesliga matches this term, scoring once and assisting four goals in the process.
Mangala has grown quite well over the years and has turned himself into a dependable enforcer in the centre of the pitch. His ability to get out of the pressure by dribbling through opponents is quite reminiscent of Paul Pogba, but he possesses the defensive attributes to provide a safety net to the defence as well.
However, Mangala is quite capable of being a goal threat from the midfield and has quite an eye despite being a holding midfielder. Signing De Jong would be a massive coup indeed, but it is good to see that the Manchester club are preparing if they fail to get their primary target.
There was an alarming need to sign a defensive midfielder last summer, which we had failed to address. The repercussions have been visible in our performances since then, as the team often could not find the right balance against various opposition.
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Matic’s due exit would add to those woes, which makes it quite essential that the Mancunians could finally address the problem this summer. The supporters would hope to see that happen, but we have to wait and see if the issues can be solved or not moving forward.
Mangala could be one of the summer acquisitions, and perhaps we should look to sign him regardless of De Jong’s availability. After all, we would need more than one holding midfielder, so perhaps we could club them together in our midfield to meet our needs.
