Jose Mourinho has already ostracized the former German captain Bastian Schweinsteiger, banishing him to the reserves dressing room. Now there has been a total breakdown in relations between the Manchester United manager and another one of his players, according to Italian media.
26-year-old Matteo Darmian was believed to be surplus to needs at Manchester United this past summer. The Italian defender was widely linked with a return to the Serie A, with the big clubs like Napoli and Roma reportedly interested in signing him. However, despite all the speculation, Darmian is still a Man United player.
That situation might change as soon as this January though, as Italian publication Tuttosport claims that there has been a total breakdown in relations between Darmian and Mourinho. They further add that the Italian right-back will be available to other clubs in the winter transfer window.
Tuttosport – Rottura totale tra #Mourinho e #Darmian. Fatto fuori dal @ManUtd, sarà sul mercato a gennaio pic.twitter.com/F3NbD8lkGq
— Giovanni Capuano (@capuanogio) September 8, 2016
Matteo Darmian joined United from Torino last summer for a reported transfer fee of £12.7 million. He got off to a bright start, and was even voted the club player of the month for August 2015. Injury problems disrupted his season though, and the 26-year-old endured an underwhelming end to the season.
The arrival of new manager Jose Mourinho was bound to have repercussions on the Italian, who was signed by Louis van Gaal. The transfer rumours kept coming in this summer, and the latest one states that Serie A champions Juventus are looking to sign him this January.
(Photo by Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images)
While Schweinsteiger’s freezing out can be attributed to his diminishing ability, there are few doubts about Darmian’s ability at the top level. The defender is yet to feature under Mourinho, but he could dispel all doubts when he is called upon a la Juan Mata.
Darmian is a versatile player with the skill and technique that sets him apart as one of the better full-backs in the Premier League. He can play in both left-back and right-back, as he has done in the past season.
The current first choices at United are Luke Shaw and Antonio Valencia, and one would believe that Darmian is ahead of the likes of Tim Fosu-Mensah and Ashley Young in the pecking order.
The confirmation of this breakdown could come as soon as Saturday. Ecuadorian Antonio Valencia will be returning late from international duty, and Mourinho may turn to Darmian at right-back for the Manchester derby. If the manager doesn’t, then there could well be some credibility to this story.
