Deemed surplus to the first-team at Manchester United, defender Matteo Darmian is reportedly a transfer target for Roma and Napoli.
Jose Mourinho’s arrival at Old Trafford has seen Matteo Darmian struggle for playing time due to the resurgence of winger-cum-defender Antonio Valencia. The Italian right-back was first choice under Louis van Gaal and was deployed on either side of the defence, but apparently he hasn’t won over the support of the new man in charge.
For both of United’s games this season, Mourinho has opted to start Valencia as a right-back, with Darmian not even selected in the match-day squad. The emergence of the club’s academy product Timothy Fosu-Mensah has not helped the cause of the Italian who could soon find himself being the third-choice right-back at the club.
According to Michael Kelleher of Sky Sports, the defender is linked with a move back to the Serie A as Italian giants Napoli and Roma are interested in signing him. Darmian moved to Old Trafford in the last transfer window from Torino for a reported fee of £12.7 million. He was expected to be one of the mainstays in the club’s back line, but unfortunately for him, his time in England seems to have come to an end.
Should Darmian be shown the door at Old Trafford?
If Darmian is let go, he would be the second signing of 2015 (after Bastian Schweinsteiger) to be shown the door by Jose Mourinho. Despite the Italian being a fan favourite at the club, it would be right on Mourinho’s part to let him go. The right-back does not come with a clean bill of health as he was injured for lengthy spells during the 2015/16. Also, he is not blessed with the tenacity and physicality as Valencia, and ranks second in most aspects when compared to the Ecuadorian.
In Italy, the 26-year-old could be given a platform to re-establish himself as he would certainly start most games. If he does stay at United, he would be restricted mainly to cup appearances and few substitute appearances every now and then. So a move back to Italy would benefit both the player as well as the club.
