Manchester United have spent much of this summer searching for a new centre back. Jose Mourinho has repeatedly stated that he made his intentions clear to the club’s transfer broker, Ed Woodward several months ago, but as of yet, despite the purchase of Diogo Dalot, Fred and Lee Grant the club has not delivered a new central defender. Rumours have consistently swirled about the notion of United interest in Tottenham Hotspur’s Toby Alderweireld, and there have been suggestions in the Spanish press that Barcelona’s Yerry Mina is also a target, but with the transfer window due to close this week, no deal has been sealed for either of them.
Of course, that could all change over the next few days, and Sky Sports along with several other outlets are suggesting that another potential target could enter the equation. United have reportedly entered into talks for the transfer of Bayern Munich’s Jerome Boateng, with a view to bringing the 29-year old German international to the club for a fee of between £40/50m. The reigning Bundesliga champions are reportedly ready to let the player go, and Mourinho’s need for an experienced centre back could be filled by Boateng.
Whether this materialises is up for debate; Boateng’s partner is known to have a dislike for the city of Manchester after spending a year at United’s cross-town rivals, and whilst a previous affiliation with Manchester City certainly wouldn’t be a problem now, it could prove to be a stumbling block. Paris Saint Germain are also said to be interested in his services, which would suggest that United aren’t the only ones whose curiosity has been piqued by the German giants being willing to sell the player for the right place.
For the money required, United could certainly do a lot worse than bring Boateng in this week. However, his injury record is less-than ideal, and given that Bayern have sold United two players in the past (Owen Hargreaves and Bastian Schweinsteiger) that have both been past their prime and were frequently on the treatment table, caution should be preached.
