Manchester United scouting games in Portugal is nothing new, and they were at it again on Friday night.
A Bola report that United were one of 17 sides to send a representative to watch Porto’s clash with Braga on Friday evening, which saw the home side run out 4-1 winners.
There is no mention of who Manchester United or anyone else was there to scout but we believe it will have been Porto duo Diogo Costa and David Carmo.
The former is Porto’s number one goalkeeper and has been linked with United over the last few months.
It’s well established that they’re on the hunt for a replacement for David de Gea, whose contract expires at the end of the season, and Costa is an option.
Back in August we covered two reports that named him as a target, with Correio da Manhã reporting that Jorge Mendes is eyeing a big move for him in 2023 and Atlético and Manchester United are among the options.
It would therefore make sense if they were continuing to keep an eye on him, although United are regular attendees at Porto fixtures.
Carmo, meanwhile, is a long-term target for those in charge at Old Trafford. They were first linked all the way back in 2020 and there have been regular updates about a possible move for him.
Their interest goes back to when he was at Braga, who he left for Porto this summer, but back in June it was reported he was a potential alternative for Ajax’s Jurrien Timber.
That followed reports from two months earlier that their scouts were keeping an eye on the defender and perhaps if Timber remains unattainable, he will still be an option.
That remains to be seen but the interest in him and Costa is certainly there and it would make sense if this scouting mission was for Manchester United to keep an eye on them both.
