Football

Why Man Utd chose not to battle Atletico Madrid to sign Joao Felix


The Portuguese attacker is the second most expensive teenager in history (Picture: Getty)

Manchester United discussed the possibility of signing Joao Felix numerous times but reportedly opted not to sign the youngster because of concerns over his lack of physicality.

The Portuguese attacker has quickly marked himself out as a star of the future, scoring 15 times and laying on nine assists for Benfica last season before earning a move to Atletico Madrid.

He didn’t come cheap though, with the Spanish side forced to pay his £113million release clause – making him the fifth most expensive transfer ever, and second most expensive teenager.

After a blistering pre-season, Felix hasn’t quite maintained that form for Atletico (Picture: Getty)

A host of European giants had been linked with Felix before he made the move to Madrid, including the likes of Bayern Munich, Atletico’s rivals Real and United.

According to The Athletic, Felix’s transfer was discussed ‘many times’ by Old Trafford chiefs prior to his mega-money move to Atletico, but they had a few reservations about the 19-year-old.

The primary concern was that Felix lacked the physicality required to cope with the pace and power of the Premier League.

There was also a feeling that he might not be able to sustain his electric Benfica form – he only has two goals and an assist in eight La Liga starts this season.

The last thing United wanted to do was break their transfer record for a player who was a one-season wonder and they wanted greater security that he could maintain a consistent level of brilliance.

It wasn’t until later in the summer that United finally gave up on Sanchez (Picture: Getty)

Somewhat amusingly, there was also a feeling at United that Alexis Sanchez could still come good, with the Chilean often lighting it up in training despite not performing on the pitch.

In the end, both Sanchez and wantaway striker Romelu Lukaku were shipped off to Inter Milan leaving United short on options in attack, with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer likely to try and bring in reinforcements up top when the January window opens.





READ SOURCE

Leave a Reply

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.