Another battle for territorial supremacy and status quo is looming large over the city of Manchester, as far the rivalry of two blockbuster clubs is concerned. Manchester United and Manchester City are believed to have been chalking out proactive measures to get hold over the services of the sensational youngster in the shape of André Silva who has taken the football fraternity by storm.
The 21-year-old striker has hogged the limelight lately and has been branded as one of the hottest properties in the sea of strikers. Silva has accustomed himself to FC Porto’s system for the last four years and in the process, he has moulded himself as a classic no. 9 for club as well as for the Portuguese national side. A natural goal scorer, he has been the attacking enigma for FC Porto so far this season and no wonder why the other big clubs across the continent are keeping a tab on the promising goal-getter.
What adds an additional star on his shirt is the versatility that he brings. he is equally efficient in playing as an attacking midfielder as well. Silva doesn’t refrain from playing the long balls, dribbling past the defenders and finding the right passes up front which is a scintillating set of characteristics for any striker. FC Porto have an illustrious history of producing world-class talents and André Silva appears to be the next big thing.
In 10 league appearances, he has already netted 7 times with a shot accuracy of 48% and has also grabbed an assist to his name in the Portuguese Primeira Liga. Interestingly, FC Porto have lured the lethal striker to put pen to paper on a new contract, which had a £51.5 million release clause, but will the amount be any sort of an issue for the aforesaid Premier League clubs from Manchester?
Frankly speaking, absolutely not. The Red Devils have found it troublesome to maintain consistency attacking wise and with clouds hovering over Zlatan Ibrahimović tenure beyond this season and the erratic form of Wayne Rooney, Manchester United do have a dearth of resources up front. On the contrary, Pep Guardiola’s brigade has some valuable options up front, with the arrival of Gabriel Jesus on the horizon (the Brazilian attacker arrives at the club in January).
As far as anyone’s conscience tells him, United should maraud for bringing Silva to the Old Trafford to strengthen their prospects in terms of sharpening their attacking tooth, either in the January transfer window or in the summer transfer window of 2017. However, they are probably going to face stiff competition from their local rivals who would love to add some depth and quality to their ranks to ensure there are no loose ends up front. Who is going to win this tug-of-war? Only time will tell.
Statistics Credits: Squawka.
