Manchester United want to develop a squad with strong personalities ahead of next season
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Manchester United are looking to add more leaders to their squad in the summer transfer window, with one player in particular being tracked.
With Sir Jim Ratcliffe now in charge of football operations at Manchester United, some serious changes are expected at Old Trafford in terms of the playing staff this summer.
Plenty of criticism has been aimed at the mentaility of the squad, too, which seems like something Ratcliffe wants to fix with the signing of "team leaders".
Manchester United have been criticised for a lack of leaders this term (Image credit: Getty Images)
According to journalist Rudy Galetti, Manchester United are considering the signing of French midfielder Youssouf Fofana, having been impressed with his displays at Monaco this season.
The report states that Manchester United are also keeping tabs on Adrien Rabiot and Joao Neves, though the former's age and latter's transfer fee means Fofana has emerged as a preferred option. At 25, Fofana has developed into an integral member of the Monaco first team, acting as vice-captain to Wissam Ben Yedder, too.
Fofana also sees himself as a leader, with his box-to-box ability and experience in Ligue 1 giving him a certain level of responsibility within the Monaco side.
"Well, despite being relatively young, I've had quite a bit of experience playing matches," Fofana said. "That naturally puts me in a leadership role within the team. Plus, being French, I have a deep understanding of the country and the league, giving me an edge over others.
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(Image credit: Getty Images)
"The new players often look to me for guidance, especially since I have significant experience in Ligue 1. And considering the club's tendency to recruit young talents, after four years, I suddenly find myself among the more experienced players."
With just a year left on his current Monaco contract, Fofana could also be available for cheap. Valued at £25m by Transfermarkt, The Athleticreported last summer that Nottingham Forest agreed a £29.8m deal with Monaco for the midfielder, but failed to agree personal terms due to Fofana's desire to play for a European club higher in their respective league.
In FourFourTwo's view, this is would be a savvy deal for Manchester United to complete, with Fofana having proved this term that he is a highly-capable midfield who is able to both quell attacks as well as surge forward. He's been a big part of why Monaco currently sit third in Ligue 1, and could be a good replacement for Casemiro.
Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.
