With the emergence of Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo as the unlikely successful centre-back pair at Manchester United following Chris Smalling’s and Eric Bailly’s injuries, José Mourinho has made it clear a centre-back isn’t a priority anymore.
However, the constant articles from both Portugal and Sweden suggesting a deal for Benfica’s Victor Lindelöf is close and could be done soon go against this train of thought.
With Eric Bailly at the African Cup of Nations for the foreseeable future, Manchester United will have to rely on Chris Smalling, and possibly Daley Blind, to fill any void that appears at centre-back, which means Gazzetta dello Sport’s strange claim on Thursday makes very little sense.
The Italian newspaper look at who around Europe could be a possible target for Italian sides, with players such as Paris Saint-Germain’s Jesé and Sevilla’s Salvatore Sirigu mentioned, which makes sense, yet the inclusion of Chris Smalling is a bit baffling.
They say that Mourinho doesn’t seem to appreciate the player’s attributes, notably his speed and his strength, meaning that a loan this January ‘could be possible’.
Even with the arrival of Victor Lindelöf, Smalling’s exit midway through the season would make very little sense, especially in Bailly’s absence, as we all know how easily Phil Jones is capable of injuring himself, with his clash with Sofiane Feghouli a healthy reminder of that on Sunday.
If Chris Smalling is to leave United because Mourinho doesn’t like him, logic states it will probably be next summer.
