Jose Mourinho is reportedly on the lookout for a midfield anchor for his Manchester United team. Having failed in his pursuit of Tottenham’s Eric Dier and Antonio Conte refusing to sell the £40m rated Matic till the time Chelsea manages to find proper reinforcements in midfield, the Portuguese has set his sights on the highly rated Julian Weigl.
The 21-year-old German midfielder, currently plying his trade at Borussia Dortmund, was one of the key cogs in Tuchel’s system last season.
Weigl is in the mould of a classical centre-half. He sits in front of Dortmund’s defence providing it extra cover while channelling attacks through him, helping link defence with the more offensive players. The 21-year-old would slot in easily in Mourinho’s favoured 4-2-3-1 featuring in United’s two-man pivot.
In a 4-3-3 set-up, he could feature in a slightly withdrawn position between the two centre-midfielders, freeing up the likes of Pogba and Herrera to go on the attack.
The player missed out on the recently concluded UEFA European under-21 Championship owing to a broken ankle that he is still recuperating from. The player is expected to regain full fitness by mid-September. Jose Mourinho is one of the most astute tacticians out there, and his teams are known for their defensive solidity.
After being hammered by Chelsea 0-4 at the Stamford Bridge, he gave express orders to the likes of Herrera to primarily concentrate on breaking up play than occupying advanced positions on the field. The move yielded a lengthy unbeaten run, but dried up the goals in front, resulting in United finishing the season with only 54 goals, a figure lower than Everton (62) and Bournemouth (55) who finished 7th and 9th respectively.
Slated for his defensive ways throughout his career, the Portuguese understands the need for playing an attractive brand of football that matches the ethos of the club. “One of the things I proposed to myself was to come to a club like Manchester United and play the kind of football that people want” Mourinho said. “It’s Man U tradition. I’m really happy with that.”
Having finished last season with a record 15 draws, Mourinho no doubt appreciates the need for more attacking intent from his team. United are on the verge of unveiling Romelu Lukaku in a sensational £75m deal, gazumping Chelsea in the process.
A midfield anchor of the likes of Weigl could really help Mourinho tap into United’s attacking potential. Spurned in their chase of Radja Naingollan of Roma and Fabinho of PSG, United remain confident over signing Nemanja Matic from Chelsea. The acquisition of Julian Weigl, all of 21 years, could prove to be a masterstroke for a long time to come.
A player feted for his positional awareness and excellent vision could be just what Mourinho needs to make United tick. It would be interesting to observe how the German, who has excelled in a team happy to keep the ball, calibrates his playing style with a manager whose philosophy among others, is to surrender the ball when need be and capitalize on the opponent team’s errors.
