Victor Lindelöf

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This could be the end of Smalling, who knows. Jose surely didnt appreciate the saga when he didnt want to play. So one of our CB must surely be leaving in the summer latest
 
I don't like it. Is this guy the best defender that £38m can buy? :nervous:

And should we really be splurging on him when we're going to have to spend big on a Carrick replacement and possibly a striker/winger soon?

We're possibly missing out on CL money and Adidas money, and we don't have unlimited spending power.
 
So I imagine he along with Bailly would be your CB pairing for a good few years.

What do you think of that?
 
My only apprehensions arise due to the fact that the Portuguese league have given the Premier League center-backs like Luiz and Mangala who in their time their were highly rated and were potential world beaters. And look at them today.

I'm more excited about the possibility of us signing their right back Semedo! He's mint.
 
LawCharltonBest said:
Benfica would have quite a team if they'd kept every player they once had. Di Maria, Matic, Luiz, Sanches etc. Hopefully Lindelof will turn out to be another one, if he signs for United
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Eusebio as well.
 
PlayerOne said:
Wonder which defender is leaving in the summer. If the rumours are true then Jose must really rate him, must see world class potential in him and that's very exciting.
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Smalling and maybe even Jones are gone.

I think the 4 will be Bailly, Rojo, Lindelof and Blind. Not bad.
 
J-Stander said:
Jones won't leave before Blind.
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Yeah not only is he playing well but Jose praised his commitment publicly after he started vs Arsenal with very little training. I get the feeling Jose likes big Phil.
 
J-Stander said:
Jones won't leave before Blind.
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What makes you say that? Blind can play in a number of positions and is handy to have as an option. Jones is injury prone but he might be convincing Jose with these performances lately. So maybe he thinks he can turn him into a John Terry type, I dunno.

I think he's one injury away from getting canned though.
 
Blind will be backup LB (or first choice depending on Shaw). Rojo Smalling Bailly Jones for CB. Valencia and lindelof for RB.

Darmian to move on this window
 
prath92 said:
Blind will be backup LB (or first choice depending on Shaw). Rojo Smalling Bailly Jones for CB. Valencia and lindelof for RB.

Darmian to move on this window
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Looks like we're interested in a different RB so Lindelof would be a CB.
 
JJ12 said:
Smalling could be in trouble to be honest
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For sure. Bailly, Jones, and Rojo have all played better than him this season. I know Smalling was injured in the Chelsea game, but in other games he wasn't incredibly impressive - just dependable.

The other three have been immense for us and have had consistent standout performances.

I trust Mourinho with this transfer, especially given his history in signing CBs (look at the last CB we signed, turned out alright!).
 
whatwha said:
I don't like it. Is this guy the best defender that £38m can buy? :nervous:

And should we really be splurging on him when we're going to have to spend big on a Carrick replacement and possibly a striker/winger soon?

We're possibly missing out on CL money and Adidas money, and we don't have unlimited spending power.
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What dont you like about it exactly?
 
Is it completely out of the question that we keep all of our CBs?
 
LFC-Fans said:
So I imagine he along with Bailly would be your CB pairing for a good few years.

What do you think of that?
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If that's the main pairing for a good few years then it probably will have worked out well.
 
I fully trust Mourinho when it comes to signing defenders. No one here had heard of Bailly in the summer but he's almost universally regarded as our best CB now. Smalling has had enough chances and some shocking performances.
 
SaboTaj said:
My only apprehensions arise due to the fact that the Portuguese league have given the Premier League center-backs like Luiz and Mangala who in their time their were highly rated and were potential world beaters. And look at them today.

I'm more excited about the possibility of us signing their right back Semedo! He's mint.
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It's also given us the likes of Carvalho.

I trust Jose when it comes to centre backs, he gets it right most of the time.
 
broccoli said:
I'm unbiased in my opinion since i rate Semedo as a potential world class right back. Although, at the moment, he wouldn't be an upgrade on Valencia. Maybe after 1 season.

About Lindelof though. He is a good, solid center back. There are other defenders with more pace, technique and aerial prowess for much less money but he has one good thing on his side, which is his mindset. Cool headed and when he does a mistake it's not due to a lack of focus.

He is having a poor season compared to previous one but, then again, the Portuguese league is a joke most of the time so you can't really properly evaluate a player (see Sanchez). Having said that and trusting José's avail, i don't believe he will be ready for the first team this season.
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Thanks, seems useful as an insight. Good to hear he's mentally strong and composed. Sounds a bit like Bailly.
 


Every United-fan should look at his decisions in the last two goals of the match (2-3 and 3-3). First a handball that leads to a penalty, and second a total marking-miss that makes it a draw instead of a win for Benfica. If you're buying Lindelöf, you get one of the biggest defensive talents, a fast defender who can both pass and hold the ball, but not a complete player. You also buy a defender that needs to play a lot to be able to become a complete world class-player.

For all those saying he can play as a DM or a RB, i am also a bit skeptical. (He have never played as a DM and only good as a RB in U-21 Euros). Lindelöf is fast and has great ball control for being a central defender, but is really nothing special if you see him as a DM or a RB. He may be able to become one, but isnt even near the quality that real DM and RBs have who is also finished players, unlike Lindelöf.
 
I'm skeptical when it comes to Portuguese sources but Mourinho knows his stuff when it comes to CBs. I think there is a space for LCB because only Rojo plays there naturally and Smalling in particular looks half as assured there. Jones played there when we had our five good games in 14/15 but his best position seems to be RCB, along with Bailly and Smalling.
 
I like how our CB's are shaping up, considering all the problems we've had over the years, I'm happy with this bunch:

Lindelof
Bailly
Rojo
Jones
Smalling
Blind
 
I have a feeling Mourinho will start to shape our defence something similar to;

New LB
Lindelof
Jones
Bailly
 
VP89 said:
Can any Swedish/Portugese following poster give their unbias thoughts?
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My take on it:

TheSwedeFromSweden said:
I really don't know if this is the right move for either United or Lindelöf.

You have to understand that Lindelöf only has played in a starting role for Benfica since the middle of last season. He hasn't completed a whole season in a starting role yet. He was fantastic when Sweden won Euro under-21 2015 (as a RB) and last season when Benfica played in CL, but has not been any special in the national team. He has been playing, and been okay, but not in any way a world class defender. His position in Benfica is perfect for him, he gets to play in a decent level week after week, and also in CL every season. He can as a talent, which he still is, develop in his own pace, without to much pressure, to hopefully become a world class defender. But to go to United, where you compete with Jones, Bailly, Smalling and Rojo is risking everything if he doesn't get minutes on the pitch, which is definitely not certain he will. And for United, to not buy a world class-ready defender and only a player who maybe will become one (and definitely needs to play to be able to become one), is very risky. And ones again, Lindelöf has only played in a starting role in Benfica since the middle of last season.

Lindelöf is not a world class defender, he is a talent, and he can become one, but his chances to that is a lot bigger in Benfica than in United.
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TheSwedeFromSweden said:
He can play as a RB as much as Bailly can play as a RB. He is fast, and okay with the ball. He is actually a bit like Bailly when it comes to moving the ball up the pitch. A bit less aggressive maybe, and definitely not as good yet. But like Bailly, its not his natural position. And in my opinion its honestly better to buy a real RB for 20 million (who is more a natural technician and offensive player) than a fast CB for 40 million and play him as a RB.
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TheSwedeFromSweden said:
For all those saying he can play as a DM or a RB, i am also a bit skeptical. (He have never played as a DM and only good as a RB in U-21 Euros). Lindelöf is fast and has great ball control for being a central defender, but is really nothing special if you see him as a DM or a RB. He may be able to become one, but isnt even near the quality that real DM and RBs have who is also finished players, unlike Lindelöf.
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With what Jones, Smalling and Rojo have shown wouldn't Southampton take a player plus cash for any of these three with us getting Virgil Van Dijk?
 
I think it makes sense


Schneiderlin, Bastian and Depay are goners. They will probably be closely followed by Darmian and Fellaini who might leave in Summer. We'll probably add Lindelof with Semedo following. So here's my thought

GK: DDG, Romero, some dude

Comment: not much to add to it

DR: Valencia Semedo
DC: Lindelof, Bailly, Smalling, Jones
DL: Shaw, Rojo

Defence Comment: a multi use defence which can be pretty attacking minded with Shaw and Semedo/Valencia causing havoc on the flanks only to close itself shut with a 4 6ft defenders at the back ie Lindelof, Smalling, Bailly and Rojo. This will allow Mourinho to change plans on a minute notice and without the need of the Belgian clumbsy in CM.

DLP: Carrick, Blind, ???
Box to box, Herrera, ???
AMC: Pogba, Mata

Mid comment: CM remains our achillees heel. I can see Mourinho, giving a final year contract to Carrick. Having said that I believe he'll be searching for a replacement for him. Meanwhile Blind will act as cover for him. The Dutch is a poor man's Carrick. With the defence sorted, Mou will be tempted to let Fellaini go, possibly adding a box to box midfielder like Cambiasso was once was. Upfront Pogba and Mata will allow the Portuguese to swift from 4-3-3 to 4-2-3-1 quite easily

AML: Martial, Young, Rashford
AMR: Mkhitaryan, Lingard

Flanks: I cant see Mourinho adding a winger for the time being. He might sign him someone in summer but not for now. If he does he would probably go for some young winger who wouldn't mind sitting on the bench for some time. Players like Guedes or Leon Bailey

STK: Ibra, new striker

Stk: I can see Mourinho getting a striker especially if Rooney leaves
 
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