Manchester United almost signed this Liverpool star
By Bence Bocsak
According to a recent report Manchester United came narrowly close to signing this Liverpool star which could have been a major coup.
Picture this. It’s the Manchester United boardroom. They are consulting. Discussions are ongoing about much needed defensive reinforcements. It is a fierce conversation. Scouts and experts alike are scrutinising the plethora of candidates available.
It is the summer of 2017. Jose Mourinho is in charge of the Red Devils. His United side are desperate to return back to the top of world football. Much hope is wrested on the Portuguese manager.
The Red Devils had just won the Europa League beating Ajax 2-0 in the final in a famous victory. The result has changed the atmosphere at the club. Hope is starting to linger back to Old Trafford.
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The Stretford is eagerly anticipating the upcoming season.
The summer transfer window has already seen the arrival of the hugely exciting Romelu Lukaku and one of the best holding midfielders in the Premier League in Nemanja Matic. The latter worked closely with Jose Mourinho at Chelsea to help the blues win the Premier League title.
Only one position remains yet to be fixed.
And in the boardroom, the Red Devils staff are drawing up the best possible candidates. According to Sky Sports, Jose Mourinho came to three solutions.
Victor Lindelof, Michael Keane and Virgil van Dijk.
The Liverpool man was playing for Southampton at the time after arriving from Celtic two years prior.
The Dutchman had caught the eye in his first two seasons in the Premier League and Jose Mourinho was a huge admirer of his style of play.
Unfortunately, the Red Devils opted to sign Swedish international, Victor Lindelof instead and the rest is history.
Virgil van Dijk signed for Liverpool six months later and has guided them to two Champions League finals and two Premier League title races.
Meanwhile, Victor Lindelof has struggled to initially adapt to the style of the Premier League and has often been a hit and miss player for the Red Devils.
The jury is still out on Lindelof’s quality.
One has to wonder, whether United’s fortunes could have changed earlier had they managed to sign Virgil van Dijk at the time.
Next. Spurs have set a surprising fee for Harry Kane. dark
Where do you think United would be if they signed van Dijk?