da mrbet： According to reports in The Telegraph, Manchester United face competition from Premier League rivals West Ham United in the race to sign Inter Milan midfielder Joao Mario, who The Sun reported in December they want to bring in to replace Henrikh Mkhitaryan if the 28-year-old leaves this month.
What’s the word, then?
da 888casino： Well, The Telegraph reports that the Irons are keen to sign the Portugal international on a loan deal until the end of the season, and having come to an agreement with the Serie A giants they must now convince the player to come to the London Stadium.
That could be easier said than done though considering The Sun reported last month that United were keen to bring him to Old Trafford in a £40m deal if Henrikh Mkhitaryan went the other way, although the Armenian now looks set for Arsenal instead.
However, The Telegraph adds that Inter don’t want to sell him on a permanent basis this month, and it remains to be seen whether the Red Devils would be willing to accept a loan deal.
How has Joao Mario done this season?
Despite costing €45m (£39.8m) when he joined Inter from Sporting Lisbon in the summer of 2016, the 24-year-old has struggled to hold down a place in the first team.
This term, he has found himself behind Marcelo Brozovic in the pecking order and has made just 15 appearances in all competitions, with more than half of his 14 Serie A outings coming from the substitutes’ bench.
According to WhoScored.com, the Portugal international’s main strengths are his dribbling and his ability to make key passes, and he has successfully completed 10 of the 14 take-ons he has attempted in the league during the current campaign, while he has made 17 key passes and has an overall passing accuracy of 89.4%.
Would he be a good signing for United?
He certainly could be.
The 24-year-old has largely played in a central attacking midfield role for Inter this season, but he can play in a deep-lying position too.
Jose Mourinho will know his Portuguese compatriot well, and he could be tempted by a loan move for him considering the money the club looks set to spend on a deal for Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez.
United certainly won’t worry about West Ham’s interest if they do want the player, knowing that they could offer him Champions League football.