Barcelona are reportedly considering a shock approach for Manchester United’s out-of-favour Italian defender Matteo Darmian
Matteo Darmian had a mildly successful debut season in top flight English football as he made the move from Italy to Manchester United under Louis Van Gaal. But the Italian has seen his game time being marginalised under new boss Jose Mourinho, who has preferred the likes of Antonio Valencia and academy ace Timothy Fosu-Mensah over the Azzurri man.
The 26-year-old was profusely linked with a number of clubs, with an exit looking likely in the summer transfer window but Manchester United decided to keep a hold of the player. Not much improvement has been noticed in the Italian defender’s status in the first-team squad up to now and Darmian has now been linked with a January exit with Inter Milan the front-runners for his signature.
Barcelona are most likely to part with Aleix Vidal soon with the player going frustrated at lack of chances. The Catalan giants were one of the many clubs linked with a move for Darmian in the summer and the Blaugranes are back in contention for the 26-year-old.
Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo claim that Darmian is one of the many right-backs Barcelona have shortlisted as a potential addition to their squad. The Italian international’s agent has offered the defender’s services to the Spanish heavyweights, as per the report.
The report added that even though Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin remains the main target for Barcelona, the hierarchy is fully aware that the La Masia graduate will command a substantial fee while Darmian could be available at a comparatively much lower price.
The player is already on the fringes of the first-team squad at Manchester United and is likely to not mind playing second fiddle in the squad to the other more-preferred players, while the 26-year-old would also provide Luis Enrique with the versatility as he is also able to play as a wide midfielder or a winger.
Manchester United are likely to not stand in the way of a transfer, with Jose Mourinho himself targeting some additions to the Red Devils’ defence in the upcoming transfer window(s).
