Manchester United battle for David Carmo

Manchester United were last week linked with a move to Braga defender David Carmo.

The 21-year-old Portuguese defender has been mooted as a potential partner for United captain Harry Kane, who occupies the right-sided berth in the middle of defence.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer reportedly wanted a defender to play alongside him in the summer transfer window but no move materialised. Instead Victor Lindelof, Eric Bailly and Axel Tuanzebe have been the other options for the Norwegian manager.

Bailly has continued to struggle with injury and has recently been linked with a move away by his agency if he does not get regular game time - something that is in part down to his lack of fitness and his lack of consistent displays.

Lindelof has been mediocre with a couple of decent performances but has largely struggled to convince of his worth on the left-hand side, while Tuanzebe has impressed in his European games but less so in the Premier League games.

Carmo is wanted to play alongside Maguire to provide balance at the back, but the Daily Mail reports that United are far from the only side to have an interest in the Braga youngster.

Roma had a bid turned of £15 million last summer but that failed to meet his release clause of £18 million, which has since been increased to £36 million. Other Premier League sides are also rumoured to be interested in the player, who has a contract that runs until 2025.

If United are to buy Carmo then there is a good chance that they would have to sell other players in order to finance such a move. Marcos Rojo would be one player who could leave, given Sheffield United’s reported interest, and Phil Jones is largely frozen out of first team opportunities, so both or one of them could be on the move.