Manchester United have joined in the race to sign Watford’s highly rated central midfielder, Abdoulaye Doucouré. Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur are also monitoring the 25-year-old and the Red Devils will have to splurge a significant amount if they are serious about landing him.
Abdoulaye Doucouré has been an inspiring figure for Watford this season both offensively and defensively. The Frenchman has stood out from the pack with 7 goals and 3 assists in 30 all around appearances. He has bossed the Hornets midfield alongside a host of midfielders, who has been rotated around from time to time.
The French international has maintained his first-team spot and has been key in their race for survival in the Premier League. Watford started off the season in scintillating form but eventually ran out of steam over the winter period.
Doucoure has been the driving factor from the heart of the park and has shown instances of absolute brilliance. A tall 6 feet figure with remarkable physical prowess will be the ideal addition to Mourinho’s overstacked midfield setup.
The Portuguese tactician has deployed the combination of Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Scott McTominay in the playmaking role from the central positions. However, their backups, Ander Herrera and Michael Carrick have hardly featured in recent times with Marouane Fellaini’s contract closing in towards expiration.
On Fellaini’s absence with injury, Herrera was expected to fill out the void with Michael Carrick as the backup option but to everyone’s surprise, McTominay has turned out to be the regular starter. The youngster is expected to have an illustrious future in a United shirt but Fellaini’s services cannot be dealt away with so easily.
The Belgian’s departure will have to be filled up by a similar defensive ace and who else to consider than a proven talent in the top-flight of English football? Doucoure started his career with Rennes in the Ligue 1 but never found the sort of recognition that he has enjoyed in recent past.
He has been capped 35 times for the France U17, U18, U19, U20, U21 sides and is expected to get a call-up to the senior side for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Manchester United’s campaign is still very much alive in the European stage and in the FA Cup. Their title challenge might be a lost cause with their bitter rivals, Manchester City extending their lead at the top of the Premier League table to 16 points. However, with a chance to finish in the second position and win a place in the Champions League next season, the potential addition of Abdoulaye Doucoure can beef up their midfield for sure.
