Given that Manchester United have been heavily reliant on Ashley Young to perform at left back over the last season, and also taking into account that the England international’s 33rd birthday will be upon us on July 9th, it seemed surprising when Jose Mourinho apparently put plans to sign another option on that side of defence on hold. Young became a mainstay of his manager’s starting XI last season, and received very little in the way of competition from Luke Shaw, the club’s over specialist left back. The former Southampton defender has frequently run into problems during his time at Old Trafford, be they related to his fitness, application or attitude, so Mourinho deciding to stick with these two Englishmen going into the new campaign seemed ill-advised.
The Times’ Duncan Castles is reporting that United are still retaining an interest in Juventus’ Alex Sandro, however, reporting on his podcast that United have agreed terms with the Brazilian. Castles is also advising that the player wishes to move to the club, and that the Serie A side are holding out for €60m for his services.
Whether or not this is true remains to be seen, of course. Juventus were quite clear in their desire to hold on to Sandro earlier in the transfer window, and given the 27-year old’s quality, it’s likely that United aren’t the only suitor for his services if the player is genuinely intending to leave Italy this summer. Reports earlier this summer had suggested that United were happy to walk away from a deal for the player due to the fee that the reigning Serie A champions required, but with the club’s also currently negotiating the sale of Matteo Darmian, it wouldn’t be a great surprise if the lines of dialogue have been kept open regarding several players this summer.
