If the reports are to be believed, Manchester United manager José Mourinho has been given £200million to spend on transfers this summer as the Red Devils seek to prepare their squad for life back in the Champions League.
The club have already confirmed that Benfica’s ball-playing centre-back
Victor Lindelöf is set to complete a switch to Old Trafford in a deal worth around £30m, while United are said to be closing in on the £70m capture of Real Madrid striker Álvaro Morata.
Those two additions make perfect sense for Mourinho: a confident and assured central defender to partner the firebrand Eric Bailly; and an athletic, hard-working striker to lead the line and add a clinical touch to a side which was far too wasteful last term.
One of the other names that keeps cropping up in connection with a big-money summer move to Old Trafford makes a little less sense, however.
Ivan Perišić is undoubtedly a player of very high quality. With successful spells in France, Belgium, Germany and Italy, as well as 56 caps at senior international level for Croatia, the 28-year-old’s solid pedigree is undeniable.
A versatile, hard-working and genuinely two-footed winger with an eye for goal, Perišić has an abundance of attributes that would immediately improve many sides – and United may even be one such team.
Furthermore, his physicality – he stands at 6ft 1ins – willingness to put in the hard miles and consistent offensive production means he is very much a “Mourinho player”.
But there are several reasons to believe that the Inter Milan star is not the right man for the Manchester side, at least not right now.
Firstly, there’s the reported fee. It is believed that United have, thus far, offered around €40m for the former Borussia Dortmund attacker, while Inter are holding out for a figure in the region of €50m.
There has become a bit of an obsession with transfer fees among fans recently, many of whom failing to come to terms with the reality of the ridiculously inflated market. When it comes to transfer fees at the elite end of the modern game, there are really only two factors to consider when judging the worthiness of a signing: can the club afford it? And does the player significantly improve the team? If the answer to both questions is “yes”, then you’ve got yourself a good signing, no matter how high the fee.
In respect of Perišić’s potential move to United, as one of the richest clubs in the world, the 20-time champions of England can certainly afford to sanction such a deal. But it’s the second condition under which the mooted transfer falls apart when scrutinised.
Good though Perišić certainly is – as evidenced by his 11 goals and eight assists in Serie A last term – for €50m or less United could target a host of better options.
At 28 and operating predominantly from the left flank, Perišić would find himself in direct competition for a starting berth with
Anthony Martial. The 21-year-old Frenchman endured a frustrating 2016/17 campaign and the Inter star would probably represent some degree of an upgrade on the version of the former Monaco youngster we saw last season.
However, an in-form Martial, full of verve, exhilarating dribbling skills and dangerous attacking intent, is a more potent force than Perišić and if nurtured correctly could become a far better player than the Croatian.
Granted, after a stunning debut season in England, Martial cut a frustrated and frustrating figure for the majority of the previous campaign. But he is a talent with world-class potential; Perišić would not represent enough of a qualitative upgrade to justify taking the Frenchman’s starting place and therefore jeopardising his future growth.
With the money being discussed, United could find a more suitable option and probably still have some change left over. Besides, Mourinho, if he is set on adding a more conventional wide man than anyone he currently has at his disposal, might be better served seeking an option for the opposite flank.
The left side of the attack has acted as a breeding ground for Martial and Marcus Rashford over the last 18 months, young players who see themselves as strikers but are serving a form of apprenticeship out wide, building experience and clocking valuable minutes out on the pitch.
On the right, Henrikh Mkhitaryan is the primary starter with Juan Mata often deployed there too. Both are No.10s by trade and therefore look to come inside into central zones whenever possible. Having the option of a player with real pace who could stick to the flank, while also perhaps possessing the versatility to play across the frontline, would be ideal.
For the €50m it would take to sign Perišić, any of Felipe Anderson, Douglas Costa or Federico Bernardeschi, to name a few, could be acquired – all of whom offer a touch more of the fantasy that is so prized within Old Trafford, even if Mourinho himself de-emphasises such traits.
If United do sign Perišić, he’d likely perform perfectly well, and many would point to the goals and assists return that he all but guarantees as vindication for his purchase. But beneath the surface there are potential consequences of his arrival that should not be discounted.
Perišić may very well be the archetypal Mourinho player, but that doesn’t necessarily make him right for United.
