Freddie Woodman has been at Championship side Preston North End since the summer of 2022, where he was awarded their player of the year award in his first season.
Woodman, 28, has been a first team player for the Championship side, getting himself 13 league clean sheets this season in the process, all of this points to him being a reliable back up for current United goalie Andre Onana.
The keeper was also part of the England Under-20s squad that won the World Cup in 2017, being named goalkeeper of the tournament and making two vital saves in the final, which ended 1-0 in favour of England.
As well as having success with England, Woodman is also familiar with ex-England manager Gareth Southgate, who is his godfather.
According to The Sun, United are currently looking at the Preston man, as well as Blackburn’s shot-stopper Aynsley Pears, who is 26.
First team Freddie
Woodman has been a key part of Preston’s squad these past few seasons, despite some shaky moments between the sticks.
The stats don’t lie though, and it’s easy to see why United would be keeping tabs on him, he’s averaged an impressive 77 minutes per goal with a save percentage of 67%.
Achieving all of this with a team in the bottom half of the Championship table has rightly earnt the young Englishman plaudits, but it remains to be seen whether a move to Old Trafford is what the 26-year-old wants, as he seems to be enjoying life as a regular starter.
Unfortunately for Woodman, starting for anyone is currently out of the question, as he is sidelined with an ankle injury at the moment.
Onana still number one
For many United fans, there was a period when Andre Onana was public enemy number 1. It seemed that when the Cameroonian first joined the Red Devils, he could hardly do anything without mistakes, which led to many fans wanting the ex-Inter Milan keeper out of the club just as fast as he joined it.
Fortunately for Onana, though, his fortunes have changed, and he seems to have settled into life at Old Trafford more. He has eight clean sheets and 81 saves in the Premier League this season.
Moreover, Ruben Amorim has backed the number one, saying in March: “This season he did some great saves that save our team, and then sometimes (he) has some problems.
But that is normal and I think if you look through our team you can find a lot of players with that issue.
We just have to support Andre, like we support all the players, and prepare the next game. Forget about the past and prepare the future.”
United do currently have a substitute keeper, Altay Bayindir, who was signed in September 2023 from Galatasaray, but the Turkish shot stopper has been used sparingly, making just seven appearances in two seasons.
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