Manchester United: Should The Club Sell Matteo Darmian To Juventus?
The Italian defender has been linked with a move to Juventus who consider him to be Dani Alves’ replacement but should Manchester United let Darmian go?
The former Torino man didn’t really have a breakthrough season with Mourinho in charge but still made a decent 29 appearances for Manchester United in all competitions. Not known for his lung busting runs forward, Darmian is a solid if not unspectacular defender who can play all across the backline.
The reality is however, that the Red Devils knew this ahead of buying him. Although Valencia had an incredible year last season, he was a little shaky in his transition from winger to fullback. At times the Ecuadorian was exposed and so Darmian was bought in order to shore up a worrying defence.
Initially it seemed a smart buy; not a lot was spent on him and he seemed to have the typical Italian nous for defending. In his first season at Manchester United he performed quite averagely and many put it down to him adjusting to the English Premier League. Many hoped he would push on in his second season.
To be fair to the man he has had a change in managers which brings about more instability but also the need to adjust once more. Some players benefit from a change in manager such as Valencia, some players careers go backwards such as Schneiderlin and some aren’t affected as much, at least on the surface, such as Darmian.
However, is this all enough to convince Mourinho that it would be ok to move him on to Juventus? The likelihood is no unless some outrageous bid is put in for him. Matteo is solid, useful and a good player to have on board with the team. He’s ready whenever his manager needs him and can always guarantee a 6.8/10 performance no matter what.
It’s rare to see him horribly exposed and his versatility is nifty. In fact, he’s played more games at left-back last season than his preferred right. He even made an appearance in the centre of defence and didn’t even look out of place. His best game was perhaps against the 2-0 defeat of Chelsea and it would take you a while to think of his last bad game in a red shirt.
The truth is that there aren’t too many incredible full-backs in the game. They’re such a rarity that Manchester United would have to break their bank to lure them away from their current teams. Think about how much Alaba would cost should Mourinho go after him. That money is needed in other areas of the squad and why sell a player who isn’t bad or looking for a move?
Often when buying a so called ‘top’ full-back they’re actually just good at attacking but poor in defending. In Matteo Darmian, Manchester United have a full-back who knows how to defend and is decent when pushed forward. Not only that but he gives the winger ahead of him the confidence knowing he can safely attack without having to worry too much about helping his full-back.
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By all means next season Valencia and Shaw, should he win Mourinho over, should be the clubs first choice full-backs but Darmian provides a great alternative and is the perfect candidate to compete with the pair of them for a spot on the team. He keeps everyone else on their toes while he continues to compete for their spots. Why risk losing a player like that?