Merih Demiral of Juventus during the Serie A match between Juventus and Cagliari Calcio at Allianz Stadium on January 6, 2020 in Turin, Italy. (Getty Images)
According to Fanatik (h/t Leicestershire Live), Manchester United are preparing a massive £50million offer for Juventus defender Merih Demiral.
A report earlier this month had claimed that the 22-year-old centre-back along with teammate Douglas Costa could move to Old Trafford as part of a double deal. However, no deal materialised as the latter was not keen on moving to London.
Demiral, who was a transfer target for United’s rivals Leicester City back in January, has now emerged as a top priority in their wishlist ahead of the next season. The young Turk has had a breakthrough campaign at Juventus despite arriving at the Serie A side just last summer from rivals Sassuolo for a sum of around £16million.
Demiral has made just five league appearances this term. However, he caught the eye of several clubs in Europe after breaking into the starting XI, dislodging summer signing Matthijs de Ligt and making four consecutive starts.
But luck did not favour the youngster as he was carried away in his fourth game against AS Roma after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. Demiral has so far made seven appearances across all competitions for Juventus this season and would have made more had it not been for his season-ending injury.
He just lost one match out of his seven appearances for the Italian giants this term, proving his worth in Maurizio Sarri’s side. Having made his debut for Turkey in November 2018, Demiral is a regular feature in the national side and has appeared 12 times for them until now.
With Demiral impressing a host of clubs in England in such a short span of time, Manchester United have now once again reignited their interest in the young centre-back. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have improved their defence significantly this season after roping in England centre-back Harry Maguire last summer.
He has formed a formidable centre-back partnership with Victor Lindelof in the heart of United’s defence. This has seen them concede just 30 goals from 29 league matches. However, Lindelof has a tendency to be error-prone and is at times inconsistent. This means United need a consistent centre-back partner at the back alongside Maguire.
Apart from Maguire and Lindelof, United have Eric Bailly and Axel Tuanzebe in the side. However, Bailly has spent a major share of his time at Old Trafford on the sidelines due to various injuries, which remains a major concern for the Red Devils.
Academy graduate Tuanzebe, meanwhile, is yet to impress Solskjaer, having made just 5 league appearances. Manchester also have Phil Jones in their ranks but the seasoned defender is way down the pecking order, giving a clear idea that they could do with a new face at the back.
Considering all this, young Demiral could be a great addition to the United squad, having proved his mettle at a top club like Juventus.
Also, he is still very young and could prove to be an excellent future investment by the club. Hence, United should not think twice before making an attempt to lure this talented Turk.
Signing Demiral will first of all offer Manchester United boss Solskjaer plenty of options in defence. Moreover, he is still young and can develop further under the Norwegian manager. Having proved his credentials at the back for both club and country in such a short period, he could be an excellent signing for the future.
