Manchester United are reportedly keen on landing Leicester City midfielder Wilfred Ndidi, who has been one of the stand-out performers for the club this season. Ndidi has been key to the Foxes’ wonderful performances this season as a result of which they are sitting third in the table, clearly in contention for a Champions League spot.
According to Express, the Nigerian international had also drawn interest from outside England before the suspension of the Premier League as high-profile clubs like Real Madrid and Paris Saint Germain were also touted as interested parties for the all-action midfielder.
However, Wilfred Ndidi is not United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s prime target as the gaffer has the likes of Corentin Tolisso and Donny van de Beek higher on his wishlist. Ajax’s chief executive Edwin van der Sar has confirmed United’s interest in van de Beek along with Real Madrid.
Solskjaer is likely to go all out for Ndidi if Real Madrid get hold of van de Beek, who is regarded as one of the most promising young talents in the world.
Wilfred Ndidi: Do they really need him?
Manchester United are currently in a transitional phase under the guidance of Solskjaer. After a couple of seasons of befuddling transfer activity, United have made impressive signings in the form of Harry Maguire, Bruno Fernandes, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Daniel James.
All four have settled well in their respective roles and are all long-term solutions. But the central midfield area has not been tweaked too much especially due to the options already available. But the form and injury record of the players currently at the club has been patchy which rendered that area of the pitch vulnerable at times.
But the likes of Fred and Scott McTominay have gelled well this year and the displays have been somewhat confidence-inducing. But there are some residue doubts regarding the long-term viability of depending on them as the only options in central midfield. United will be hoping to challenge for the title in the coming seasons and a midfield upgrade could be the need of the hour if they manage to fortify the other problem areas in the squad first.
Wilfred Ndidi is a strong and dominant presence in the defensive midfield area who likes to tackle and break the opposition’s play. His tackling skills could help United win back possession in midfield with more creative players like Fernandes and Pogba (provided he stays at the club) taking matters into their own hands after that. Ole already seems to have a sorted defence and Ndidi’s inclusion in the squad will certainly mark them as a strong outfit to break down for even the top teams in Europe.
At 23 years of age, he will fit perfectly in the current United squad. But as mentioned above, this should not be a priority signing for Ole right now. Ole needs further reinforcements on the wings and ideally an out and out striker before he can think of upgrading his midfield.