The Lisandro Martinez deal will most likely see Manchester United sell a few of their centre-backs as they won’t fit in the new manager’s plans. The Erik ten Hag era is well and truly underway at Old Trafford as the club completed three signings in the last three weeks. Recently, the Red Devils reached an agreement with Ajax for the Argentinian defender.
The Manchester giants have already slimmed out their squad by offloading players such as Nemanja Matic, Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata, Paul Pogba, and Edinson Cavani – all of whom had reached the ends of their contracts. On the other hand, Andreas Pereira has been bought by recently promoted side, Fulham.
The overhaul at the club was imminent, considering how they finished the 2021/22 season. Securing the player that the gaffer asked for means a newfound source of trust between the hierarchy and the manager. Now with the arrival of Martinez, we can expect a few players to be shown the exit doors at United. Let’s see which of the centre-backs Manchester United will sell after this crucial signing.
Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and Raphael Varane remained the mainstays at the heart of United’s defence last campaign. Meanwhile, defenders Eric Bailly, Phil Jones, and Axel Tuanzebe found game-time harder and harder to come by.
According to Metro, the imminent arrival of Martinez is bound to trigger the departure of the defensive trio. Bailly and Jones share merely 8 games between each other in the previous season while Tuanzebe managed to find 9 appearances in the Premier League, numbers none of these players would be happy with.
Phil Jones arrived at Old Trafford more than a decade ago after establishing himself as one of the best young centre-backs in England. 11 years and 204 Premier League appearances (via Transfermarkt) later, it seems like the time for the Englishman to move on has finally arrived. Jones’ stint at United has not been unfruitful per se, since the 30-year-old has managed to win a Premier League with the Red Devils.
Unlike Jones, Bailly’s introduction at Old Trafford has been more recent as the Ivorian arrived along with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba, and Henrikh Mkhitaryan in the summer window before the 2016/17 season. On the other hand, Tuanzebe has been a part of the club for a long time, being a Manchester United youth product but he could never establish a place in the main squad.
Ten Hag’s pre-season tenure has gotten off to a blistering start with the Dutchman and his team securing a massive 4-0 win over rivals Liverpool and a 4-1 win over Melbourne Victory. They followed it up with a 3-1 win over Crystal Palace and a 2-2 against Aston Villa.
Lindelof and Varane started the first game. They were replaced by Eric Bailly and left-back Alex Telles who deputized as a centre-back in the second half. Lindelof started alongside Maguire in the second game and was replaced by the same duo as before.
The absence of both Jones and Tuanzebe in the pre-season squad along with the fact that Ten Hag would rather play an offensive full-back as centre-back also signals the end of the road for both the players who will find any opportunities difficult to come by.
Read More:
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- Player Profile – Lisandro Martinez | Who is United’s Newly Signed Versatile Defender?
- Setback for Manchester United as Club Lose Race for €15m Rated Ligue 1 Right-back
The Ivorian’s stellar performances in the pre-season has attracted interest from Napoli while three Premier League clubs have expressed interest in signing the English defender this summer. It would be relatively easy for Manchester United to sell the above two centre-backs, but an exit for Tuanzebe could be rather difficult.
While Bailly is somewhat popular amongst the fans for his antics on the pitch with regards to his on-the-ball movements, the fans seem to have lost faith with the other two and it seems like it is the best time for them to move on.
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