Why Man United should plot a swoop for Sergej Milinkovic-Savic

According to Il Messaggero (h/t The Metro), Manchester United are set to rekindle their interest in Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic in a bid to replace Paul Pogba.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, 25, has scored four goals and provided five assists so far in Serie A and has helped Lazio on an undefeated run of 21 games in the domestic championship. The Biancoceleste are currently second in Serie A, one point behind Juventus, with Serie A currently suspended.

The Serbian international’s displays have convinced Manchester United that he would be a solid signing and they are now said to be serious about a move for him, although a move may still depend on Pogba’s future, the report adds. (h/t The Metro)

Pogba, who rejoined United from Juventus in the summer of 2016, has been limited to just eight games this season due to ankle problems. The midfielder has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford with Real Madrid and Juventus interested. (h/t The Sun)

The Frenchman was understood to have made a U-turn on his future and was now interested in staying at Old Trafford to play alongside January signing Bruno Fernandes. (h/t The Daily Mail)

However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, despite not publicly criticizing Pogba, wants to offload the midfielder and the Red Devils have dropped their asking price to £100m for the 2018 World Cup winner, who is under contract at Old Trafford until 2021. (h/t The Sun)

As far as Sergej Milinkovic-Savic is concerned, he signed for Lazio in 2015 after just a year with Genk. He adapted quickly to the demands of Serie A football and is a key to Lazio’s success with 7 Man-Of-The-Match awards this season.

The Serbian has been consistently chipping in with goals for the last few seasons—21 in 91 Serie A appearances- a healthy return for a central midfielder. He has also supplied 11 assists combined in the last three seasons in Serie A.

Milinkovic-Savic can play in various positions across the middle of the park and this would benefit Solskjaer, who can change his game plan accordingly.

Bruno Fernandes has not lost a game since arriving at United, and every person at the club has been lifted by his arrival. He is United’s new Portuguese hero and now the February Premier League Player of the Month. The Portuguese has three goals and four assists to his name, but his influence runs much deeper than that.

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With Fernandes making a huge impact, whilst adding creativity and goals to the United side, the addition of Milinkovic-Savic would further increase the team’s potency in the final third. The Serbian would be a fantastic acquisition given his record for Lazio and European experience. He would bring competition as well as depth to the United squad next season.

Verdict

All in all, Milinkovic-Savic would be a perfect like-to-like replacement for Pogba should he be sold by United this summer.