Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Manchester United are no longer in the race for a “dominant” centre-back despite Barcelona backing away from a transfer.
Manchester United are expected to make changes to their defence this summer, with Rúben Amorim determined to address the number of goals his side have been conceding.
January saw the arrivals of Ayden Heaven from Arsenal and Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu from Lecce, but injuries — including a setback that will keep Lisandro Martínez out until November — have left the backline stretched.
Several exits are on the horizon. Victor Lindelöf will leave when his contract expires in June, and Jonny Evans is also likely to move on.
However, the recent emergence of Tyler Fredricson has given United fans hope that significant defensive reinforcements may come from the Academy across the next season or so.
Romano confirms United no longer in for Tah
Earlier this month, it was revealed that United had held talks with “dominant” Germany and Bayer Leverkusen centre-back Jonathan Tah, who is set to become a free agent this summer.
However, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has explained that, despite Barcelona pulling out of the race, United are no longer a significant party with respect to Tah’s future.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Romano explained that, with Barcelona not eyeing Tah as their manager, Hansi Flick, feeling he has enough centre-backs in his current squad, Bayern Munich are now the favourites for the player.
Further, Romano noted that, although Bayern have not completely secured Tah, they are pushing to get the deal done with a three-year contract on the table.
Do United need to sign a new centre-back this summer?
Amid United’s need for multiple new attacking reinforcements, there is an argument to be made that United do not need to sign new centre-backs this summer.
Although they may have needed to if United were still playing a back four, the shift that Luke Shaw and Noussair Mazraoui have undergone to become right and left centre-backs has added to the number of players who can play across the back three at Old Trafford.
With Harry Maguire having signed a one-year extension and Ayden Heaven proving himself to be more than capable in the Premier League, Amorim may be able to forego a new centre-back signing.
With United linked with signings such as Matheus Cunha, Liam Delap, and Bryan Mbeumo, it may be a more efficient use of funds for United to forego a centre-back signing and instead focus on other areas.
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