Man Utd receive transfer update on ESSENTIAL target

Cameron Smith

• 14 Jan 2024 17:46 GMT
• 9 min read

Manchester United are still interested in signing Lens defender Facundo Medina, according to reports in Italy.

The Red Devils wanted to sign Medina back in 2021 and have held interest in the Argentine ever since.

In recent months, talk of a move to Old Trafford had died down, with other interested parties coming to the fore.

AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus are among those keeping an eye on him, according to FootMercato, while there is also “a Premier League club whose name has not been leaked lurking in the shadows.”

Now, Calciomercato have reported that Man Utd and Brighton & Hove Albion are both interested in signing Medina.

According to the report, Lens would allow Medina to leave the club if an offer of €25 million is lodged due a “gentleman's agreement.” That figure is in line with his current Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €24.7m.

Paris Saint-Germain, AS Monaco and Atletico Madrid are also keen on the Argentine centre-back, as per L’Equipe, although the French publication have stated that Medina will not leave Lens mid-season.

However, FootballTransfers has been told that he is set to leave the club during the 2024 summer transfer window.

Why Man Utd should sign Facundo Medina

Pursuing a deal for Medina makes total sense for Erik ten Hag’s side. As a left-footed centre-back, he would be in direct competition with Lisandro Martinez, but his compatriot has suffered with injury problems since moving to Old Trafford and Jonny Evans isn’t quite up to the level needed for regular European football.

Furthermore, Medina’s arrival would allow Martinez to be trialled at left-back or defensive midfield, both of which he played during his time at Ajax.

With Raphael Varane potentially on his way out, signing a right-footed centre-back makes perfect sense too, hence Man Utd’s pursuit of Jean-Clair Todibo, but the left side shouldn’t be neglected, especially as Ten Hag has almost solely used Harry Maguire on the right this campaign.

Martinez can’t be relied upon fitness wise and signing Medina would therefore lessen the drop-off in performance that has been seen in Lisandro’s absence.

In addition, according to data analytics experts SciSports, Varane is the only Man Utd defender with a higher current skillset than Medina, suggesting that he is more than ready for a step up to Old Trafford.

This is underlined by the fact that he ranks as Ligue 1’s third-best central defender so far this season, as per SciSports’ algorithm.

Facundo Medina vs Ligue 1 defenders

Medina is set to be available for a very reasonable price of €25m and that fee is something that Man Utd should absolutely be willing to pay. They will have to wait until the summer, however, which may come to the disappointment of Red Devils fans.