According to a recent report by Calciomercato, Manchester United have suffered a big blow in pursuit of AS Roma defender Kostas Manolas. The same report claims that the Greek defender has a release clause of €36m, but it doesn’t come into effect until the end of the ongoing transfer window which means that United cannot sign him for that fee right now.
This recent revelation will be a big blow for the Red Devils as they look to bring in some quality players this month to bolster their squad ahead of a potential race for the top 4 spots over the next few months in the Premier League.
However, Ed Woodward could opt to trigger the defender’s clause next summer if he does not pen a new deal with Roma by then. So not all hope is lost in Man United’s chase to sign the Roma star.
The Greek defensive ace has been a real revelation for AS Roma since making a switch from Olympiakos in the summer of 2014. He was a two-time Greek champion when he was playing at Karaiskakis Stadium, so he knows what it takes to win. Manolas also won the Greek Cup twice with Olympiakos before coming to the Serie A.
The 27-year-old centre-half has been a commanding presence at the back for Eusebio Di Francesco’s side and has already put in some strong defensive displays at the Stadio Olimpico during this campaign. Manolas has featured in 21 matches for the Italian outfit this term and has two goals and one assist to his name across multiple competitions.
The Serie A talent is a very reliable presence who knows how to defend inside his own box and is also quite strong in the air as well which makes him a threat at both ends of the pitch. Man United are in need of a world-class centre-back, but the jury is still out on whether the Greek centre-back can be termed in the ‘world-class’ bracket.
United are in urgent need of a commanding defender so they are better off pursuing other transfer targets and not focus on a potential deal for Manolas which could take place at the end of this campaign.
