Manchester United are interested in signing Southampton defender Virgil Van Dijk, according to the Mirror.
The Mirror believe that Jose Mourinho feels that his current crop of defenders are ‘soft’ and that Van Dijk would add some much needed steel to his back-line.
It is also reported by the Mirror that the Dutchman would cost up to £30 million, a price that Mourinho would be willing to pay to add both leadership and aggression to his defence.
Southampton boss Claude Puel, as reported by Sky Sports, claimed that Van Dijk has all the assets to become one of the best defenders in the world. Puel likely hopes that his formidable centre-half would reach that level at St. Mary’s, but in recent years the Saints have become somewhat of a feeder club for the top Premier League sides.
Reinforcements are dearly needed for United, who sit in 8th place going into their clash with Swansea this afternoon. Van Dijk could well be the plug for Mourinho’s leaky defence.