Manchester United’s three most linked midfielder options

Manchester United have been looking for a solid midfielder for some time now. Declan Rice, Kalvin Phillips and Aurelien Tchouameni are names that have been thrown out there, but who would be best?

Manchester United will have a big job on their hands this summer. They’ll have a new manager coming in who will likely want to shake things up, as well as some key players who are likely to jump ship (looking at Paul Pogba and Cristiano Ronaldo).

They need transfer targets, and the main one they’ve had on their list for some time now is a midfielder.

The three players on this list have been the names that appear the most in rumours about Manchester United and midfielders. So we’ve taken them and shown off what they do best for their team now, and how they can benefit Manchester United.

 

 

 

Declan Rice

Declan Rice has been one of Manchester United’s top priority targets for a couple years now. This summer should be no different.

The Englishman has been arguably West Ham’s most important player and a big key as to how they find themselves performing so well this season.

He is fourth on the team for assists with four and second for pass completion rate, with 90%, and is only second by 0.1% to Manuel Lanzini.

On the defensive side of things, he is at the top of the club. He has the most tackles with 63 and most interceptions with 84, which gives him a total of 147 tackles + interceptions. That has him fourth in the entire league.

Rice is a strong ball playing defensive midfielder, and already has strong chemistry with some of his England teammates who also play for United, like Marcus Rashford, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw.

However, he comes with a big price tag. He has two years left on his contract and West Ham have said they will take no lower than £100 million for him.

 

Kalvin Phillips

Kalvin Phillips is another one of United’s top targets and has been again for a few years now. 

Phillips found his way into the England side for the Euros and proved he belonged.

This season hasn’t been kind to Kalvin, though. Leeds have not been performing fantastically this year and find themselves very much in the relegation battle. 

Phillips himself hasn’t played since early December, and that does form part of the reason for Leeds’ misfortunes. But it is also hard to bring up comparisons with the other two here since he has played under half the games they have this season.

He has a +1.46 plus/ minus net per 90 minutes, which means that for 90 minutes of play, with Kalvin Phillips on the pitch, Leeds has more net goals per 90 minutes than they have net conceded while he has off the pitch.

He is an important player for Leeds, and his England career, as short as it has been so far, has shown his capabilities and strengths in his position.

Phillips has shot down rumours of a move anywhere, though, saying that he is happy at Leeds and would like a new contract. He has also said specifically of Man United that he wouldn’t move to them if he were to leave out of respect for the Leeds fans.

 

Aurelien Tchouameni

Aurelien Tchouameni is going to be one of the most sought-after midfielders this summer. The 22-year-old Frenchman has made a name for himself, putting in great performances for AS Monaco and earning himself a call-up to the French side in the last year, a fantastic feat on its own considering the strength of the French team.

Tchouameni has played the second-most minutes for Monaco this season, with only their goalkeeper having played more. He has an 87.3% pass completion percentage and has the most progressive passes in the club with 145.

By way of tackles + interceptions, he is by far the best, clocking in at 165 (78 tackles, 87 interceptions). That’s not just at the top of the club, either. That’s the highest combined total for the whole league. His 87 interceptions is also the most in the league, 78 tackles are sixth most.

And last point in support of him, he is also very adept in the air, winning 72.4% of his aerial duels, which is also sixth in the league.

Tchouameni should be the easy choice here. He is similar to Rice in the way he plays, and in interviews, he has expressed his love for playing alongside Paul Pogba in France’s midfield, with the current Manchester United player reciprocating the feelings. He is also half the price, with Monaco wanting £50 million for him.

But United will have a tough time on their hands trying to sign him. Like mentioned before, many teams will be vying for his signature, and if one of the things he is looking for is to play alongside Pogba, then United, who will more than likely be losing Pogba in the summer, are out of luck