Twenty-time English league champions Manchester United are thought to be close to signing Benfica’s highly-rated centre-back Victor Lindelof.
The 22-year-old Lindelof has been in impressive defensive form for the Portuguese giants in his 21 appearances for the club this season, and it appears the Red Devils are keen to snatch up such promising talent to bolster their back four.
United manager Jose Mourinho has been under the microscope for some time in his short stint at Old Trafford, with his club clinching only eight wins in the Premier League – and many are blaming the team’s defensive weakness as the reason for their inability to compete for the title in the current campaign.
Lindelof, touted by many English pundits as the next Rio Ferdinand, appears to be the solution for United’s defensive woes, and Mourinho is thought to be in agreement.
True enough, according to Portuguese daily A Bola, United are believed to be close in signing the defender, with Benfica president Luis Felipe Vieira having flown to England to finalise the deal. The price agreed upon is thought to be in the sum of 45 million Euros.
Subject to conditions, however, that fee could rise to a total of 60 million Euros.
Lindelof hails from Vasteras, Sweden. He signed for Benfica in 2012 and has a contract with the club until 2020.
(Via Abola and Transfermarkt)