Victor Lindelof has been heavily-linked with a move to Manchester United of late. The Premier League giants are reportedly set to splurge a whopping £38 million on the centre-back.
So who is this 22-year-old defender that has United willing to part with a fortune for his services?
Here’s everything you need to know about Jose Mourinho’s latest target and also a glimpse of him in action in the above video posted on the World Of Football YouTube channel.
PROFILE
Full name: Victor Jorgen Lindelof
D.O.B: July 17, 1994
Position: Centre-Back
Nationality: Swedish
Release Clause: £26 million (but any suitor would have to spend significantly more to fend off competition)
BREAKTHROUGH SEASON
Lindelof signed for Benfica from Swedish team Vasteras SK as a 17-year-old and made his first-team debut in October 2013 but the 2015-16 campaign proved to be his breakthrough season.
He really began to make waves in January of this year. He effortlessly established himself in a side that went on to clinch the league title and it was no coincidence that they won 14 of the 15 fixtures he featured in.
He also impressed in the Champions League, going toe-to-toe and holding his own against attackers from Zenit St. Petersburg and Bayern Munich.
Lindelof’s displays for Benfica earned him his first national team bow in March and he subsequently featured prominently in the national team during the European Championship in the summer.
WHY UNITED NEED HIM
Time and time again this season, United have dominated teams only to concede through a rare attack from the opposition. While their finishing has been suspect at times this season, their defence has been just as concerning.
Mourinho needs to instill solidarity at the back and while Eric Bailly has been fantastic, his recent injury concerns have exposed the rest of the back-line. The defensive personnel have been shuffled around far too much.
Despite the successful partnership between Marcos Rojo and Phil Jones of late, neither seem to be out-and-out first choice options and in Lindelof Mourinho perhaps sees a long-term partner for Bailly.
An added advantage is his ability to feature at right-back. Antonio Valencia’s unavailability for whatever reason leaves the team exposed in that position with Matteo Darmian not being shown the greatest confidence.
STYLE OF PLAY
Standing tall at 6ft 2in, Lindelof boasts a formidable physique and has often displayed his strength on the pitch. While not the quickest across the grass, he does possess a decent turn of pace which has seen him fill in at right back on occasion.
Perhaps his greatest assets are his reading of the game and positional sense, enabling to snuff out the danger in its infancy.
While composed on the ball and capable of decent distribution, the Swede’s style has a touch of hard-tackling no-nonsense defending to it.
He’s definitely no slouch when it comes to technique or the ability to carry the ball past the half-line, but it’s his commanding presence and solid approach that could see him compliment Bailly perfectly.
FUN FACT
Unfortunately, at Benfica he’s been bestowed with one of the most over-used nicknames in sport – ‘The Iceman’.
ZLATAN’S VERDICT
Lindelof’s Sweden team-mate could well be lining up alongside him at club level too in the near future and going by the Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s opinion of him, he wouldn’t mind at all.
“I think Victor is doing great things, he is playing good for Benfica, he gets a lot of responsibility for the national team now, he is growing.
“Is he good enough for United? I think he’s good enough for the big clubs out there. It’s up to him what he wants. Whatever he chooses will be good for him.
“I know he is hot on the market so let him make the right choice, what fits him good.”
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