Man United convinced of negotiating affordable deal to sign £84m-rated Benfica star

Man United convinced of negotiating affordable deal to sign £84m-rated Benfica star

Manchester United are in the transfer market for a second centre-back this summer.

Leny Yoro was already signed by the Red Devils for £59 million from Lille, but manager Erik ten Hag has pushed the team to bring in another central defender.

Matthijs de Ligt of Bayern Munich has been strongly associated with United in recent weeks, but their bid of £29.5 million has not been able to meet the asking price of £42 million plus add-ons.

According to O Jogo (page 8), United is reportedly considering a trade for Antonio Silva of Benfica. One of the top young center backs in European soccer is Silva.

The 20-year-old’s contract at Benfica now includes a sizable release clause worth £84 million.

United, nevertheless, is “convinced” that they can sign the talented Portuguese player for a “reasonable” price.

Silva would be another statement signing after Yoro

Paris Saint-Germain are currently on the verge of landing Benfica midfielder Joao Neves.

The Portuguese wonderkid has a release clause worth £101m in his contract, but the Ligue 1 champions look set to sign him for £59m with Renato Sanches possibly returning to Benfica.

The proposed deal should offer plenty of encouragement to the Red Devils. United should be optimistic of signing Silva for around £50m with a fringe player acting as a makeweight.

Silva would be another statement signing after Yoro. The centre-back did not have a good European Championship with Portugal, but he was superb for Benfica last season.

The youngster had a passing accuracy of 93 percent, completing 61 percent of his long balls.

The Benfica graduate also won 67 percent of his ground and aerial duels with six recoveries, three clearances and 2.1 tackles per league appearance.

Just like Yoro, he has immense potential and has shown plenty of maturity at a young age. He would be a fantastic signing with long-term success in mind