Manchester United are reportedly ‘preparing a proposal’ to sign Sporting CP star Goncalo Inacio this summer, as per the Portuguese outlet A Bola.
After joining the club from Ajax Amsterdam a couple of years ago, Lisandro Martínez played a key role in helping his side finish third in the Premier League and win the Carabao Cup in his debut season.
However, amid his injury-disrupted campaign last term, Man Utd struggled to showcase their best. So, United are reportedly planning to sign a new left-footed centre-back to support Martinez next season. Jarrad Branthwaite has been mentioned as the primary target but Inacio is reportedly on their shortlist as well.
According to the report by A Bola, Man Utd are planning to step up their efforts to sign the Portuguese and are already ‘preparing a proposal’ to lure him to Old Trafford.
The report further claims that Inacio has a £51m release clause in his current contract and Sporting don’t want to let their star man leave for anything less than that with United ready to match the price to get this deal done.
Inacio to Man Utd
A Bola also states that Man Utd have ‘good relations’ with Sporting having already signed Cristiano Ronaldo, Nani, Marcos Rojo and Bruno Fernandes so that could help the record Premier League champions to sign Inacio.
The Sporting star is a ball-playing defender and has the ability to play threading passes between the lines from the deep. He is a centre-back by traits but can also play in the left-back role.
The 22-year-old has a pretty similar playing style to Martinez in terms of their abilities with the ball. However, Inacio isn’t as aggressive as the South American in the defensive situations.
Inacio is still very young and has time on his side to sharpen up his defensive skills. So, he could be a shrewd signing for the record Premier League champions should they purchase him.
However, it is going to be interesting to see whether Man Utd can eventually manage to secure his signature in the upcoming transfer window to reinforce their defensive department.
