Despite appearing to be focusing all their attention on signing Frenkie De Jong from Barcelona, Manchester United are almost certain to need more than one new player this summer.
The Red Devils, led by new manager Erik ten Hag, have lost four senior midfielders – Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata – all of whom opted against renewing their contracts.
Now with a major void to fill, even if the 20-time league winners do complete a deal for De Jong, they’re still going to be short of genuine quality in midfield.
However, hope could be offered to the United faithful after multiple reports from the Portuguese media claim the Red Devils have recently held talks with super-agent Jorge Mendes over a possible move for Porto midfielder Vitinha.
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According to a recent report from Record, the 22-year-old, who has a minimum release clause of just £34m (€40m) is destined for a move to England’s top-flight this summer.
Fellow publication O’Jogo (via Sports Witness) expand on the speculation, reporting that Mendes had a meeting with Man United chiefs last week.
Part of their written report said: “The 22-year-old midfielder’s name has been mentioned in meetings that Jorge Mendes regularly holds with the most wealthy leagues – last week he met with Manchester United and Barcelona, ??for example.”
Interestingly, although capable of playing in the centre, the young Portugual international has put in his best performances when tasked with being a defensive midfielder and that is likely to have caught United’s attention.
Having spent his entire career on Porto’s books after signing up to their youth academy all the way back in 2011, Vitinha, who has two years left on his deal, has gone on to feature in 59 senior matches, in all competitions, directly contributing to 10 goals along the way.