New Delhi: Manchester United have seemingly won the race to sign LOSC Lille’s talented young defender Leny Yoro in a deal worth £52 million. The defender is set to sign a five-year deal with the English giants which will see him be at the club till 2029, having successfully completed his medical with the club.
The defender broke onto the footballing scene during the recently concluded season, making his breakthrough for Lille’s first team and making 32 appearances for the side in Ligue 1 as his side finished fourth, securing them a place in next season’s UEFA Champions League’s qualifying rounds. He was also a part of Thierry Henry’s preliminary squad for the Olympics but was left out of the final squad due to Lille’s participation in the UCL qualifying rounds.
🚨✍🏻 Leny Yoro has just signed his contract as new Manchester United player.
Deal completed on both clubs and player side as Man Utd and Lille are exchanging all documents today.
Yoro signs in at Manchester United until June 2029, medical tests also done. Saga over. pic.twitter.com/pOKvE2cPfC
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 18, 2024
Several top European clubs were said to be in the running for the Frenchman with the likes of Real Madrid and Liverpool interested in the defender but none of the clubs chose to match Manchester United’s offer. Yoro was said to have his heart set on a move to his dream club, Real Madrid, but the Spanish giants refused to pay Lille’s asking price of around £50 million for a player whose contract was expiring at the end of the 2024/25 season.
Real Madrid were willing to wait and sign the player for free next season but Lille weren’t gonna let their top prospect leave for nothing which prompted them to accept United’s bid for the defender. Yoro was waiting for an indication from Los Blancos but they never had any intention to go as high as United went with their offer which led to Yoro accepting United’s proposal.
Manchester United have been actively recruiting defenders after the departure of Raphael Varane left them a little short in the defensive department, while there are still doubts over the future of Victor Lindelof. They have already seen two bids rejected by Everton for their star defender Jarrad Branthwaite as they fell short of their asking price of around £75 million and are still looking at Bayern’s Mathias De Ligt.
Yoro is set to be the second arrival at Old Trafford this season with the club already having confirmed the signing of Bologna’s Joshua Zirkzee in a £36.5 million deal.
The 18-year-old defender is set to become Erik Ten Hag’s second signing of the season after the arrival of Joshua Zirkzee from Italian side Bologna. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
