Manchester United are expected to sign at least one new central midfielder in January.
The midfield has been a long-standing issue at United, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was unhappy the club did not sign the right profile during his tenure, and Ralf Rangnick will be just as frustrated if the same doesn’t happen under his watch too.
However, reports continue to surface suggesting this problem will be fixed in the winter, although who United will target remains unclear.
The club are keen on RB Leipzig's Amadou Haidara, yet there’s no guarantee that they’d be able to land the Mali international as soon as next month. Plus his African Cup of Nations commitments act as a short-term deterrent.
A list of alternative options are undoubtedly being drawn up, and here are three players that could well be on that list, based on what we know United are after.
Mahmoud Dahoud - Borussia Dortmund - 25
Dohoud was linked with both Manchester clubs whilst impressing at Borussia Mönchengladbach back in 2017, yet despite the interest he opted to stay in the Bundesliga, joining Dortmund that summer.
Since then, he’s enjoyed a solid career with the German giants, although he fell out of favour this time 12 months ago after a clash with head coach Edin Terzic.
It looked as though his days at Signal Iduna Park may have been numbered as a result, however he forced his way back into the side in February, thereafter maintaining his place right up until the end of the season and playing a key role in his side’s qualification for the Champions League.
He usually operates best in a deeper role, one half of a double pivot in Dortmund’s 4-2-3-1. Although his technical skill means he can play in different midfield roles more than efficiently.
The 25-year-old is dependable in possession, rarely wasteful in his passing, and very press-resistant on the ball, able to dribble away from danger with ease.
Dahoud’s also been reared in a strong counter-pressing environment at Dortmund, working under coaches like Lucien Favre, Peter Bosz and more recently Marco Rose.
He’s thrived within the same and notably from United’s current crop of midfielders, only Fred has attempted more defensive pressures this season than Dahoud’s average of 17.2 per 90.
In the summer he will have just 12 months left on his contract, perhaps opening the door for United to swoop and present Dortmund with an appealing cash offer.
Franck Kessie - AC Milan - 25
The highly-rated midfielder is a key player for AC Milan, yet his current contract is due to expire in the summer, and as of yet, he’s nowhere close to agreeing on an extension.
This means he’s able to sign a pre-contract agreement with foreign clubs from January.
From a United standpoint, Kessie possesses a lot of the traits they’d be looking for. He’s quick, strong, mobile, press resistant but also good in possession.
He boasted a pass success rate of 88.9 per cent last season, despite playing a wide range of different short and penetrating balls into more valuable areas on the pitch. Furthermore, only Pogba from United’s current crop of midfielders attempted more dribbles per 90 than the Milan man last season.
Kessie netted a standout 14 league goals in that campaign, a remarkable number and not one you’d expect from a player predominantly operating in deeper areas of the pitch. Yet it’s important to note that 11 came from penalties.
Sure enough, he’s netted just the four this season, with fewer penalties coming his side’s way.
Still though, Kessie is an aggressive protective presence in the middle, able to adequately press opponents, break up attacks and sweep up danger ahead of the defence, which is exactly what United are after.
Yves Bissouma - Brighton - 25
Bissouma has been widely tipped to join one of Europe’s biggest clubs for a while now.
He’s already amassed just short of 100 Premier League appearances since signing for Brighton from Lille in 2018.
Typically for his position, he is not a headliner grabber in terms of goals or assists, yet he’s quick and extremely mobile which makes him a master at sweeping up danger ahead of the defence.
It’s not just how quickly he can stop an opponent’s attack though, but also the speed he can then launch one the other way, whether that be with penetrating forward passes, dribbling or carrying the ball through the congested middle areas of the pitch.
He doesn’t dribble often, predominantly to do being in a possession focused side like Brighton’s, but when it’s needed, he does it expertly. This is a point highlighted by the fact that he has a dribble success rate of 80 per cent this season.
Having already proven himself in the Premier League, it’s no surprise that a number of top sides in the division have been after him, yet United would likely trump the lot if they opted to make a move.
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