Manchester United are set to finalise the £30 million signing of Benfica centre-back Victor Lindelof within the next few days.
According to Portuguese media outlet Correio de Manha, Manchester United are expected to announce the signing of Benfica defender Victor Lindelof this week. The Red Devils are reportedly prepared to pay £30 million for the player’s services.
Lindelof’s move to the Manchester outfit is expected to be completed shortly and the club are likely to announce it on the 9th of this month after Sweden have played France in their FIFA World Cup 2018 qualifier.
The defender has chosen to remain coy on his links away from Benfica, stating that he is enjoying life in Portugal, but has still left the door open to an exit in the summer.
Manchester United were heavily linked with the player in January, and it appeared that he was likely on moving to England. However, manager Jose Mourinho opted against signing anyone then, instead looking towards a squad overhaul in the summer.
The 22-year-old is a balling playing defender, boasting an extremely high passing accuracy in the Liga NOS this season. He is good at reading the play, but is slightly weak on the tackling front, and refrains from playing dirty.
It is understood that the two clubs have agreed on a £30 million fee for the defender, and he is likely to become the first one to walk through the door in the summer – a window in which Mourinho has promised to spend and rebuild the team.
He inherited a below-par defence last summer and brought in only one player in that department in Eric Bailly. The Ivorian proved to be a decent buy for the former Chelsea boss, and became one of the many revelations of the Premier League campaign.
While Bailly is set for a lengthy stay at Old Trafford, he will be needing a partner who can make the starting eleven week in and week out, and one that has the complete trust of the man at the helm.
Unfortunately for Mourinho, he has tried out a number of combinations at the back, and none of them have quite worked out as per plan. While Marcos Rojo has shown some promise this past season, he is set to be missing until January.
Phil Jones and Chris Smalling have both had persisting injury worries, and are not expected to be first-team regulars next season. Mourinho may decide to let go of the duo as Smalling has already started to attract offers.
