Man United Opinion: Red Devils should drop their interest in Maguire and Koulibaly and sign Diop instead
According to Metro, Man United are interested in signing West Ham centre-back Issa Diop this summer, with reports claiming that the Red Devils are prepared to test the Hammers resolve with a big-money bid.
Diop, however, is not the only centre-back on manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s radar, with United also linked with moves for Napoli’s Senegalese international stalwart Kalidou Koulibaly, as well as Leicester City star Harry Maguire. (h/t Metro)
United are prepared to offer £45 million to West Ham in order to bring the 22-year-old French youth international to Old Trafford but the Hammers are holding out for a fee of at least £60 million to part ways with their prized asset.
The East Londoners spent £22 million to bring Diop to the Premier League from French club Toulouse as a part of their spending spree last summer and it is understood that they now want more than twice that amount to let him depart following the youngster’s impressive debut season under Manuel Pellegrini.
Diop established himself as an ever-present at the back for West Ham in his very first season at the club and went on to make a total of 38 appearances for the Hammers in all competitions, scoring twice. The 22-year-old’s stocks have risen significantly since his arrival in England and the Old Trafford chiefs might as well need to loosen their purse strings if they are really serious about striking a deal for the Frenchman this summer.
Well, it is a no-brainer that United need to bring in a new centre-back this summer in order to sort out their defensive problems. The Red Devils conceded as many as 54 goals in the Premier League this past season, which was the second-worst defensive record amongst the top ten clubs and almost twice the number (28) that they shipped over the course of the 2017-18 season.
United’s backline has deteriorated significantly in a very short span of time and the likes of Phil Jones, Eric Bailly, Ashley Young, Victor Lindelof and Chris Smalling were all slammed numerous times by the fans and pundits for their inconsistent and lacklustre performances. Quite clearly, the Red Devils need to bring in upgrades on several of their options at the back if they are really serious about challenging for the Premier League title in the years to come, if not, next season.
Solskajer is likely to be backed heavily in the transfer market this time around but the Norwegian needs to be sensible with his approach while investing in players. As a matter of fact, United cannot afford to blow away the majority of their budget on one player, given that centre-back is not the only area that is in dire need of investment.
The Red Devils also need to bring in a replacement for departing club-captain Antonio Valencia or an upgrade on Ashley Young at right-back, whilst central midfield reinforcements following the departures of Ander Herrera and Marouane Fellaini are also likely to be high on the manager’s wishlist. Furthermore, United need to offload Alexis Sanchez and bring in quality centre-forward to replace Romelu Lukaku, given that the Belgian isn’t the best for Solskajer’s style of play.
Suffice to say, United have a hell of a lot of problems to sort out and spending £80 million on Harry Maguire or £100 million on Koulibaly would hardly make a lot of sense.
It is true that the Red Devils cannot bolster all areas of their squad in a single transfer window, and while a centre-back remains a top priority, Solskajer needs to look at cheaper and more affordable alternatives to the likes of Maguire and Koulibaly to ensure that United give themselves a chance of solving as many problems as they can this summer itself.
Issa Diop is likely to be available for a fraction of that price, and although West Ham have slapped a £60 million price tag on the 22-year-old following his impressive debut season, the Red Devils should fancy their chances of bringing him to the club for a fee much lower than that.
Standing at 6ft. 4 inches with a towering well-built frame, Diop is a tremendous athlete and very fast and agile for a centre-back of his stature. A physically dominating defender noted for his speed, athleticism and supreme aerial ability, the Frenchman also impressed with his calmness, composure and decision-making at the back in the Premier League last season.
Blessed with the ball-playing qualities of a modern-day defender, Diop registered a pass success rate of 86 this past season. To add to that, the 22-year-old averaged 2.3 aerial duels, 2.1 tackles, 1.9 interceptions and 4.7 clearances per game in the Premier League, figures which speak volumes of his well-rounded attributes as a central defender. In fact, the youngster gave Man United a bitter taste of his robust defending when he played a key role in West Ham’s 3-1 victory over the Red Devils back in September last season.
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Issa Diop has the potential to evolve into a world-class defender in the years to come and United have every reason to look at him as a good long-term, as well as, a short-term investment. The Frenchman is certainly good enough to play for their first-team and he is just 22, which is another reason why United should prefer Diop to the likes of more established and experienced central defenders, Maguire (26) and Koulibaly (27).
