As per The Sun (h/t Football.london), Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho is keen to sign Manchester United defender Diogo Dalot in the summer.
Dalot, 21, rose through the ranks of FC Porto’s youth system and made a breakthrough in the 2017/18 season. After he’d spent six months with the club’s senior set-up, Mourinho signed him for Manchester United back in July 2018. He is one of the promising young full-backs in Europe but has been unable to make a name for himself at Old Trafford due to injuries.
The youngster made 16 Premier league appearances last season and contributed with 2 assists. While he looked set to enjoy a brilliant campaign, a long-term injury forced him out of action for the majority of the 2019/20 campaign. And with United willing to offload him, as per the report, the Lilywhites should lure the £50,000-a-week starlet to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the summer.
The Lilywhites have endured a disappointing campaign so far. After sacking Mauricio Pochettino, they signed the Portuguese tactician, under who there were good results earlier. But that didn’t last long as they succumbed to several defeats.
Tottenham are out of all the cup competitions, whilst also finding themselves in 8th position in the league standings. They are almost set to miss out on Champions League qualification as they have been inconsistent so far.
The injuries to key players like Harry Kane, Heung Min-Son and Steven Bergwijn has been a major reason for the lacklustre campaign. But the main problem is the defensive unit, which has been leaky throughout the season, conceding 23 goals in 17 games since Mourinho’s arrival. This clearly indicates that Tottenham need to bring in reinforcements to their backline.
Apart from a centre-back, they should also bring in a right-back. Serge Aurier is the only option there and the Ivorian has not been at his best, with his errors costing his team at times.
Thus, to strengthen the right-back position, signing Dalot would be a wise decision by the club. The Portuguese U20 international had enjoyed a brilliant first season with United and had previously shown glimpses of his best.
He is capable of playing at left-back as well, whilst he can also to operate in an advanced role. His versatility would be a massive boost to Tottenham and his inclusion would bring healthy competition within the squad too.
Tottenham are in dire need of full-backs and Dalot could provide them with the much-needed depth. He could be a valuable addition to the squad given he keeps himself away from injuries. As he is just 21 years old, he can be seen as a long-term player for the Lilywhites.
