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Last season with both Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia absent, Erik ten Hag had to resort to playing multiple players out of position to fix the problem position.
The Englishman missed 36 games last term while the Netherlands international failed to make an appearance.
Diogo Dalot and Aaron Wan-Bissaka, both right-backs by trade, took turns playing as left-backs during the business-end of the season.
The manager was even forced to play centre-back Victor Lindelof and defensive midfielder Sofyan Amrabat in that key position, such was the injury crisis at that time. INEOS do not want a repeat of the same situation and want to fix this issue moving forward.
LB search ongoing
Malacia is yet to return to training and there is no fixed timeline regarding his return while Shaw is likely to earn a break after the Euros which means the Red Devils are likely to be without a specialist left-back for the start of the season unless a new one is recruited.
United have been linked with a move for Milos Kerkez, Miguel Gutierrez, Ben Chilwell, and even Sergio Reguilon just to name a few, but the name of Turkish star Ferdi Kadioglu has been circulating a lot recently.
The 24-year-old’s performances for Fenerbahce last season attracted plenty of interest, with Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal, Wolves, and an unnamed English team joining the Red Devils in the pursuit of the Turkish international.
According to TeamTalk, United are in the lead, having scheduled a meeting with the player’s entourage in the upcoming days, while his asking price of €25 million forced the Germans to drop out of the race.
The Gunners are currently focused on Riccardo Calafiori, giving the English league champions a clear path. Or so INEOS had thought.
Mourinho planning to thwart United
It has now come to light that new Fener boss Jose Mourinho is eager to retain the attacking full-back and wants the board to reject any offers for Kadioglu. It will likely require a significant offer to change their stance.
“Manchester United are leading the charge to sign Ferdi Kadioglu this summer, with talks already scheduled with a player also drawing interest from Arsenal and Wolves – but TEAMtalk can reveal that any attempt is likely to face strong opposition from Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho.
“Fenerbahce’s newly-appointed coach Jose Mourinho is a big fan of the player and has made it clear to the Turkish club’s board that he would resist any attempt to sell the 24-year-old.”
The race has become more complex from United’s perspective, and it remains to be seen if the new co-owners will persist or switch to a more attainable target.
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