Manchester United will have to battle Chelsea and City for Tottenham star’s signature
Manchester United will face competition for Danny Rose
If Manchester United believe they are going to have an easy time prying Danny Rose away from Tottenham then they are sorely mistaken. In addition to the difficulty of negotiating with Spurs, the Red Devils will also face serious competition from several of their Premier League rivals.
Working in Mourinho’s favour is the fact that Rose prefers a move to United. Unfortunately, officials at Tottenham won’t be overly concerned with their left back’s wishes. If they’re going to part with him either in January or this summer, it’s going to be to the highest bidder.
That’s precisely why Chelsea and Manchester City will have a large part to play in this transfer battle. Both clubs are also in the market for a new left back and have the financial wherewithal to pip Manchester United. Both clubs would also love to deal a blow to United while also strengthening their own squads.
Chelsea have made no secret of their desire to strengthen their left fullback position. Most of the Blues’ efforts to date have focused on Juventus defender Alex Sandro, but it’s easy to see Antonio Conte shifting his focus to Rose. The Englishman certainly fits the Italian manager’s idea of how a fullback should play. Rose is both athletic and physical enough to thrive under Conte.
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Guardiola thought he had his left back position sorted out with the purchase of Benjamin Mendy this summer. Unfortunately, his injury has left City short of cover. Club officials expect Mendy to make a full recovery, but they aren’t going to wait around for him to get fit. Guardiola could opt to move for Rose to reunite him with former Tottenham star Kyle Walker in his back four.
Manchester United should still be considered the favourites, but they don’t face an easy road. Their public pursuit of Rose will also work against them. City and Chelsea are fully aware that he’s one of Mourinho’s top targets. At the very least, both clubs will sound Tottenham out about Rose’s availability to make sure United are forced to pay the highest transfer fee possible.
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The bottom line here is that signing Danny Rose won’t be clean or easy for United. They may still win out in the end, but expect a lot of twists and turns along the way.