According to a recent report by the Telegraph, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is preparing to sell both Eric Bailly and Marcos Rojo in order to fund a move for a new defender during the January transfer window.
It is understood that the United boss is desperate to bring in a new centre-back with the likes of Toby Alderweireld, Harry Maguire, Jerome Boateng and Diego Godin all linked with a switch to Old Trafford in the recent past.
The Red Devils have fallen off the pace in the title race after making a mediocre start to their domestic campaign. They had to endure a humiliating 3-1 away defeat at the hands of their ‘noisy neighbours’ Manchester City last weekend which once again highlighted United’s defensive shortcomings at the back.
Except for Chris Smalling, none of Mourinho’s other defenders have been able to find any consistency while operating at the heart of the Red Devils backline. Eric Bailly, Victor Lindelof, Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo have all failed to cut the mustard at Old Trafford this season which is one of the main reasons why United needs to sign a world-class defender in January.
Lindelof has been getting the nod to start alongside Smalling over the past few weeks and to be fair, the pair have done relatively well against the lesser teams but was not able to perform at the same level when going up against the bigger teams such as Man City.
That needs to change soon, or the Mancunian heavyweights could run the risk of missing out on a top 4 finish at the end of this campaign. Mourinho’s men are currently languishing in the 8th place of the league standings behind teams such as Bournemouth and Watford. The Red Devils have shipped in 21 goals in 12 matches which is not good enough for a top club who are trying to book a place in the UEFA Champions League next season.
It could be a shrewd move for Mourinho to get rid of some of the dead weight in his squad in order to make room for new recruits. So a January clear-out might be a bold yet effective move from the Portuguese head coach as he looks to turn his team’s fortunes around for the better.
