- 22 hours ago
Ready for Man Utd! Bournemouth star who DESTROYED City can be Amorim's first big signing
Robin Bairner
- 2 Nov 2024 13:00 CDT
- 6 min read
Manchester United might have entered a new era, but that’s not to say the arrival of Ruben Amorim as head coach will have resulted in their plans being completely torn up.
One position that they are guaranteed to sign in is the left-back role. Persistent injury issues for Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia mean that Man Utd have no option but to recruit in that sector.
This is not a new problem for the Red Devils, however, and in many ways that is a positive thing for head coach Amorim as there has already been a shortlist of options drawn up.
FootballTransfers exclusively revealed in the summer that among those possibilities is Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez, whose two assists against Manchester City on Saturday only reinforced the fact that he is a player that United should be looking at signing as an alternative to Alphonso Davies.
STATS
Milos Kerkez
D, M (L)
B'mouth
Milos Kerkez
D, M (L)
B'mouth
Kerkez scored an 8.3 on FootballCritic for his performance, which went together with a 7.2 in the victory over Arsenal a couple of weeks earlier.
His contribution to Bournemouth’s second against City typified the qualities that Kerkez could bring to a side to excite Amorim. Bombing down the left side following a goal-kick, he broke in behind the defence to sling in a devastating cross that was turned home by Evanilson.
Previously, he had created the opening goal by gathering possession 30 yards out, showing skill and strength to beat Phil Foden to reach the byline before his cutback was turned home by Antoine Semenyo.
Kerkez can become key at Man Utd
At the age of 20, Kerkez has the capacity to become Manchester United’s best player, according to data analytics firm SciSports.
Although not a top Premier League wing-back yet – he ranks in the upper part of the middle third of players in his position, according to SciSports – his scope for development is significant and he appears just the type of player that Ineos want the Red Devils to sign.
Kerkez vs Premier League full-backs: 2024/25
He has the scope to be significantly superior to Luke Shaw, for example. SciSports give Shaw a SciSkill rating of 104.6 based on hundreds of in-game data points. He is currently United’s third-highest rated player behind Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford.
Kerkez has a potential SciSkill of 122.8, which may be a lower ceiling than the likes of Leny Yoro, Rasmus Hojlund and Alejandro Garnacho, but is still higher than anyone at United is currently reaching.
His Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) sits at €15.5 million, yet with interest from other leading clubs, most notably Liverpool, the Hungary international would likely command a higher fee than this.
All the elements are here to make a deal work, with Kerkez’s display against Man City acting as a sweetener for what Man Utd could expect from a very exciting prospect.
