According to ESPN’s transfer window preview for Manchester United, Barcelona have surprisingly shown an interest in bit-art Red Devils ace Diogo Dalot.
Dalot has only started seven of his 11 appearances this season, with most of the 21-year-old’s outings coming in FA Cup and Europa League clashes against respectably much weaker opposition.
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The rapid ace was already behind Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Luke Shaw and Brandon Williams in the full-back ranks – but has now also been overtaken by the returning Timothy Fosu-Mensah in the pecking order.
Dalot has struggled to nail down consistent first-team minutes since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was appointed, the Portuguese ace was signed for £19m in the summer of 2018, as per BBC Sport.
It’s quite alarming that even though Dalot’s versatile enough to play on either flank – in a traditional or wing-back role – that the talent isn’t playing a bigger role for the Red Devils.
The Portugal Under-21s star has made 34 appearances since joining United, scoring once and providing three assists.
Barcelona could certainly do with reinforcements at full-back ahead of next season and a versatile option may be exactly what the side need – especially considering their well-documented financial state.
A better backup for 31-year-old Jordi Alba is needed after the shaky debut season from Junior Firpo, Dalot could also compete with Sergio Roberto and Nelson Semedo at right-back.
Considering some of Semedo’s injury troubles and the fact that academy graduate can also be called into central midfield, Dalot would have a decent chance of minutes on his preferred flank.
Whilst the Red Devils may well be looking for suitors for the out-of-favour talent, would a sale to a massive club like Barcelona be worth it?
Dalot’s still only young and has plenty of time to establish himself as a quality player, should United instead consider a loan for the ace or a sale to a lesser club than one of Europe’s giants?