Manchester United are not currently planning on signing a new centre-back this summer despite their defensive struggles in their opening g...
Manchester United are not currently planning on signing a new centre-back this summer despite their defensive struggles in their opening game of the Premier League season against Crystal Palace.
The Red Devils looked well off the pace at Old Trafford on Saturday as they lost 3-1, with Victor Lindelof enduring a miserable game up against Wilfried Zaha and Harry Maguire also struggling
United’s woeful defensive performance prompted calls for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to bring in a new central defender, with club legend Gary Neville even claiming they would not challenge for the title unless they brought a pacey new centre-back in.
But, according to The Athletic, United will not look to address the shortcomings in the centre of their defence before the window closes and are still prioritising other areas of the pitch instead.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – who refused to pin any blame on Lindelof individually – feels he already has enough centre-back options at his disposal and does not need any more.
Eric Bailly was on the subs bench while Timothy Fosu-Mensah, who played at right-back against Palace, can also play in the centre.
Axel Tuanzebe is still working his way back to full fitness but is very highly rated around Carrington, while Phil Jones remains part of the squad and Teden Mengi has been training with the first team.
United also have Marcos Rojo and Chris Smalling, though the pair are likely to be offloaded – though the latter could be reintegrated into the squad if Roma do not offer a suitable fee.
The Athletic even claim that United have been offered a number of players who would bolster their defence, but have declined.
Instead, United remain focused on signing a right winger and are yet to give up on signing Borussia Dortmund and England star Jadon Sancho, while a left-back is also on the agenda with Alex Telles the top target in this position.
Speaking about the need for United to invest in a new centre-back, Neville said on Sky Sports: ‘We can talk about Jadon Sancho all we like but until Manchester United get a centre-back who can run and defend one-on-ones they are never going to win the league.
‘They are never going to win the Premier League with that centre-back pairing. They have to get a mobile, dominant centre-half in alongside either Lindelof or
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