Chelsea has reportedly accepted a £66m bid from Man Utd for Willian, while it’s claimed Gary Cahill is also of interest to Jose Mourinho.
The Red Devils arguably still have room for improvement this summer as after their disappointing campaign last season, more was perhaps expected from their transfer window. Mourinho has already seen Fred, Diogo Dalot and Lee Grant officially unveiled as new signings, but after finishing 19 points adrift of rivals Man City in the Premier League title race and with no trophies at all to show for their efforts last year, they certainly have ground to make up.
According to The Express, via the paper edition of Tuttosport, they could be set to bolster their attacking options as it’s claimed that Chelsea have given the green light to a £66m bid from Man Utd for Willian. As per The Sun, the winger has been heavily linked with United for some time, and so it remains to be seen whether or not real progress has been made.
The Brazilian international enjoyed a productive campaign last season, scoring 13 goals and providing 12 assists in 55 appearances in all competitions, before playing a key role for Brazil at the World Cup in Russia earlier this summer. Given he’s set to turn 30 next month though, that does raise question marks over how sensible it would be for Man Utd to potentially splash out £66m on him, but Mourinho knows what he can offer having previously worked with him at Stamford Bridge and so it remains to be seen if a deal is done.
Further, the report also claims that defensive stalwart Gary Cahill could be on his way to Manchester too, with Mourinho seemingly looking for defensive reinforcements despite having countless options at his disposal already. The Man Utd boss can call upon Eric Bailly, Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Marcos Rojo and Victor Lindelof for the central positions, but that doesn’t seem to be enough if Cahill is genuinely on their transfer radar.
Ediale’s (Our football editor) verdict:
How will a Willian solve a problem a Sanchez couldn’t solve? The problem for Manchester United is Pep Guardiola. If Man City wasn’t a perfect team last season, Man United will be singing the Mourinho praise into this season. In addressing a gap, he brought in Sanchez last season. But the technicalities of playing Sanchez and Pogba together are beyond a manager like Mourinho (and who am I to say Mourinho isn’t a good manager, he is).
But you must understand that both players like to move a lot. Both players like to have the ball a lot. Both players have great pressure to perform hanging on their necks, both players came to the club to become the special star. Now these qualities are further complicated by the fact that one is very strong on giving long passes and better enjoyed playing deep. The other is stronger in short passes and better enjoyed just at the tip of the box 18.
You can’t make these kind of pair the Iniesta and Xavi of your team. Sadly this was the frustration that made Pogba ineffective last season (and caused Mourinho to question his commitment). It made Sanchez overwhelmed and exhausted from covering too much space last season. Yes, we often see Sanchez as a hard worker, from Barcelona to Arsenal to Chile national team. But we don’t see him doing box-to-box pairing with players. He gets things dirty and rough at the tip of the box 18.
And this is why a Mata, Pogba and Sanchez under Pep Guardiola will produce a miracle than under Mourinho. That’s why Fellaini had to stay last season for Mourinho against the fans wish. Mourinho was looking for a player like Kante and he thought he could see such a player in Sanchez.
Mourinho do better than Pep managing a Pogba, Kante and Fellaini. The French team looked like a squad under Mourinho. Such teams will never lose a final. But for a league running, the puzzle will always be about beating Pep’s ball passion magic.
So as Mourinho attempts bringing Willian, the understanding of how they play and collaborate as a team under the manager’s playing philosophies must be sorted out.