The blockbuster Man Utd and Napoli swap deal which could catapult Ruben Amorim’s team back to the big timeplaceholder image
The blockbuster Man Utd and Napoli swap deal which could catapult Ruben Amorim’s team back to the big time | Getty Images/ Photojoiner
Jadon Sancho has been linked with a move to Napoli, but could Man Utd use his potential exit to their advantage?
To describe Ruben Amorim’s start to life as Manchester United boss as underwhelming would be a massive understatement, but equally it’s fair to say that the Portuguese coach inherited a difficult set of circumstances and at least deserves some time to try and work his magic on of world football’s biggest fallen giants.
United finished last season in 15th, marking not only their lowest league finish of the Premier League era, but their worst campaign since 1974 when they were relegated from the top-flight before achieving an immediate promotion a year later under Tommy Docherty.
That season United managed 10 wins, 12 draws while falling to 20 defeats. In comparison last season, with four fewer games the Red Devils won 11, drew nine and lost 18 - giving them an average of 1.11 which is not too dissimilar to the 1 point a game they managed when relegated.
Clearly, Ruben Amorim has plenty of work to do if he is to get United back to their former glories, or at the bare minimum challenging for a Champions League spot.
Positive changes have been made, including the £63m capture of Matheus Cunha from Wolves, who has the potential to slot beautifully into one of the two No.10 roles in Amorim’s system. Meanwhile, the club look set to keep Bruno Fernandes on board and are thought to be advancing well in their pursuit of Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford after his incredible 20-goal campaign last term.
Both Cunha and Mbumeo scored 35 between them last term, and will inevitably add goals to a team that only managed a mere 44 across last season. But the need for a clinical centre forward is paramount if United are to be treated as a serious force again next season, particularly when assessing the underwhelming performances of Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hoijlund among others.
Why Man Utd should target Victor Osimhen this summer
Rasmus Hojlund scored just four league goals in 32 appearances last season while his main competitor for a starting spot Joshua Zirkzee managed one less in the same number of games.
It’s a far cry from the numbers star-studded names like Wayne Rooney, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Robin van Persie, Eric Cantona, Dimitar Berbatov and co managed on a regular basis - while also not comparing favourably against the goal records of more modern day striker examples like Romelu Lukaku, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Antony Martial among others.
United are yet to decide where best to utilise Zirkzee, with Amorim experimenting with him as both a No.10 and a forward which to an extent explains his lack of clinicality.
But with Hojlund it’s not just his goals that make grim reading, but also his underlying stats. For example, he 24.8% of his aerial duels - putting him amongst the lowest of any forward in the league. While he only has an average of 0.58 shots on target per 90, showing both the team’s lack of creativity and his failure to carve out openings of his own. Meanwhile, Osimhen has the potential to be a game-changer after scoring 37 in 41 appearances last season during a fruitful loan spell at Galatasaray.
Osimhen at 25-years-old is a player at the peak of his powers both in terms of pace, strength and goals and he’s a nightmare for defences to deal with. He’s unlikely to have any future at Napoli, having pushed for a transfer last summer, and has reportedly stated his desire to play in Europe as opposed to Saudi Arabia.
Crucially, the Nigerian based on the last available data from the 2023/24 season in Serie A, wins 44% of his aerial duels, averages 1.63 shots on target per match and is capable of creating goalscoring moments for himself and others.
The blockbuster Napoli and Man Utd swap deal which could prove genius
Italian champions Napoli are believed to be competing with Juventus for the signature of Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho after Chelsea opted against making his loan move permanent. Things have simply never worked out for Sancho at Old Trafford due to a combination of form, injuries and his public clash with former boss Erik ten Hag.
He’s unlikely to be reintroduced to the team by Ruben Amorim but Napoli are thought to be confident of their chances of getting the England international firing on all cylinders again and getting the winger back to his pre-United levels at Borussia Dortmund, via Sky Italia.
United were willing to allow Sancho to leave for £25m last summer and after a mixed showing at Stamford Bridge which saw him manage five goals and 10 assists across all competitions (several of which came in the Conference League), it’s likely the Red Devils would charge a similar fee this time around.
Napoli’s interest in Sancho could act as a sweetener in helping the Red Devils get their hands on Osimhen (reportedly worth around £64m) ahead of their rivals while perhaps making the figure slightly less expensive with United potentially paying just north of £40m plus Sancho in this hypothetical scenario to get the Nigerian forward on board.
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