When it comes to the topic of potential actions Manchester United can take in order to improve, most of us, supporters of Manchester United, will readily agree that the club should acquire new players. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of what players and which positions to target. Some are convinced that players such as Sancho, a right winger, should be the focal point for offseason targets. A talented forward would improve Manchester United’s attack front, leading to more goals scored which can translate to wins. others maintain that there are other positions of need. However, I believe Manchester United should acquire a center back and a center defensive midfielder to bolster the defense.
Manchester United is commonly regarded as one of the best football clubs of all time. In recent history, the team has had trouble living up to the reputation as one of the greatest clubs; The last time United won the Premier League and Champions League was 2011 and 2008, respectively. The club needs to improve, by signing new players, in order to contend for trophies. Signing new players is needed to improve the team, but the main complication comes down to which position and players Manchester United should sign.
While the addition of Sancho would undoubtedly improve the roster, there are other players and positions of need. Pauly Kwestel, a long-time United fan who actively writes in-depth blogs regarding the club, insists that “United HAVE to sign Sancho” due to his young age of 20 years and raw talent as a player; However, Since Sancho plays right wing, he would be taking over the starting spot currently occupied by Mason Greenwood. Sancho and Greenwood are very similar in terms of raw talent and potential. Greenwood is only 18 years young, proving that he could potentially be better than Sancho in the coming years. According to Manchester United’s website, the starting front three of Rashford, Martial, and Greenwood combined for 56 goals in the Premier League, the most out of any attack in the league last season, indicating that the attack clearly is not the issue.
Rather than aggressively pursuing forwards, the club should be looking towards acquiring a center back and a center defensive midfielder to bolster the defense. In the current season, Manchester United have conceded 12 goals in only five games, 2.4 goals given up per match, according to the premier league website; however, statistics don’t portray the full story in this case. According to Davis Flusche, a United fan for over 10 years, “recently they[Manchester United] have been a counter-attacking team. Last season they didn’t give up many goals because they had almost eight players back on defense at all times.” He elaborates on his point stating, “Due to United’s playing style, they should be conceding less than one goal per game.” It is embarrassing to watch as the defense seems helpless against opposing attacking units despite having ample players back to support them. The Premier League website also shows that both center backs Eric Bailley and Harry Maguire are each responsible for an error leading to goals in the current season.
Given the defensive stats and the nature of Manchester United’s playing style, the need for a large purchase at the center back position has become increasingly more evident. One player Manchester United need to sign is Dayot Upamecano, a 21-year old French center back. According to the premier league website, the current starting center back for Manchester United Victor Lindelof has a successful duel rate of only 47% compared to Upamecano’s 63% successful duel rate. Upamecano is a much more reliable and consistent defender in comparison to the current starters. Upamecano played a crucial role in leading his team, Red Bull Leipzig, to the semi finals of the Champions League. Given his young age of only 21, Upamecano has the potential to be one of the best center backs in the world while also immediately bolstering United’s defense.
Additionally, according to George Flood, a writer from the Evening Standard, Manchester United have been interested in Upamecano since 2016, nearly signing him for just £500,000 in 2016. Upamecano currently has a market value of $66 million. Although United failed to acquire Upamecano in 2016, the club has the opportunity to make up for it by signing the 21 year old star before his market value increases even further.
The center back position is a blaring need for Manchester United, but in order to completely fix the defense, the club needs to add a highly talented center defensive midfielder. Manchester United supporter Kwame Grant states that “Pogba is our only good center mid, but he isn’t known for defense. Outside of him we only have a bunch of mediocre center mids but no one that stands out.” The midfielders who Kwame was referring to are Scott Mctominay, Nemanja Matic, and Fred: all worth less than $30 million according to the transfer market. The main role of the center defensive midfielder in Manchester United’s system is to stay back while the team is attacking along with supporting the defensive line. One team which utilizes their center defensive midfielder in a similar manner is Liverpool. The main difference between the two teams, however, is that Liverpool have a very talented center defensive midfielder in Fabinho whose current market value is $66 million. Fabinho was a key part in Liverpool's domination last season, allowing only .87 goals per match according to the Premier League’s website.
Purchasing a skilled center defensive midfielder would greatly improve Manchester United’s starting 11, preventing them from conceding an excessive 2.4 goals per match. One player Manchester United need to pursue is 23 year old Denis Zakaria who currently plays in the Bundesliga. Zakaria is a strong 6′ 2″ midfielder who specializes in defense and is only valued at $44 million. His price on the transfer market has been drastically increasing in the past year, accumulating an immense $22 million to his market value since June of 2019. Zakaria’s market value is bound to keep increasing at a steady rate, indicating his talent and improvement as a player. Manchester United need to act quick to acquire Zakaria before he becomes too expensive or other teams become interested. The 23 year old would immediately start at United and has the potential to be a staple of United’s midfield and defense for years to come.
Many Manchester United supporters were disappointed when the club failed to acquire Sancho; however, not pursuing players to improve the defense would be the biggest detriment to the team. Assuming the front three of Rashford, Martial, and Greenwood can continue their success from last season, the only positional needs for United would be a star at the center back and center defensive midfield.