Old Trafford Night
Manchester United have been in poor form this season, with many of their key players underperforming. However, Lisandro Martínez has stood out as their best player, scoring a goal away at Liverpool and netting the winner against Fulham in the Premier League recently.
Sadly, he has now suffered an ACL injury, ending his season prematurely. Furthermore, the South American defender is likely to miss the first few months of next season as well.
To address this, United brought in Ayden Heaven during the winter window. However, Heaven is a left-footed center-back with no experience at the top level, so he cannot be relied upon to replace Martínez’s influence.
According to German outlet Sport Bild, United are considering the possibility of signing a new left-sided defender and have shown interest in RB Leipzig’s Castello Lukeba. The player’s agent has been seeking options to help him advance his career, and United have already made initial contact regarding a potential deal.
The 22-year-old recently signed an extension with Leipzig, which includes a hefty £75m release clause. Additionally, Lukeba is attracting interest from Liverpool, Chelsea, and even Real Madrid, who were eyeing him to strengthen their defense last summer.
Lukeba has had a challenging season with injuries, making just 10 league starts and keeping seven clean sheets.
Despite Martínez’s injury, United still have depth at center-back after signing Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro last summer. If they decide to let go of Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans next summer, as both players’ contracts are set to expire, bringing in another center-back could be essential.
That being said, Ruben Amorim’s side is reportedly facing financial issues and has been making staff cutbacks. This raises the question of whether it would be wise to spend £75m on Lukeba under these circumstances.
