Manchester United have been advised by Paul Parker to sign Kaoru Mitoma in the next transfer window, while offloading Jadon Sancho.
- England winger has struggled at Old Trafford
- Japanese star shining for the Seagulls
- Ten Hag told to steer clear of French winger
WHAT HAPPENED? The Red Devils spent big on England international winger Sancho during the summer of 2021, with a £75 million ($93m) deal put in place with Borussia Dortmund. The 23-year-old has struggled to live up to expectations – scoring just 10 goals and finding himself dropped from Erik ten Hag’s plans earlier this season – and Parker believes United should be looking to upgrade in the wide attacking department by prising Japan international Mitoma away from Premier League rivals Brighton.
WHAT THEY SAID: Former Manchester United defender Parker, who won two league titles during his time at Old Trafford, said of Mitoma, “I really like him.” He is direct and prefers to play on the outside of his opponent, which is unusual in today’s football. No defender wants that, and he excels at it. Mitoma would also make an excellent PR signing. A Japanese player at Manchester United would be a huge story.
“I would love to see him at Man United but then they have to offload some of their wingers and they could start with getting rid of Jadon Sancho. I would rather have Mitoma in the squad than him. He has proven himself in the Premier League and I doubt that Sancho will ever do that. I think he should go back to Germany and play in his comfort zone where he is best. But if he comes to the club, Man United needs to figure out what to do with Marcus Rashford, who is best at the left wing. But that’s a luxury problem to have two good wingers.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Mitoma has registered nine goals and five assists for Brighton this season, with Parker claiming that he would be a better option for United than World Cup-winning forward Ousmane Dembele of Barcelona. Asked if he would look to rekindle interest in the fleet-footed French winger, Parker added: “No, I would definitely not want to have Ousmane Dembele at Man United. He is always injured and he hasn’t proved himself at a big club. He did well at Dortmund but hasn’t done it at Barcelona yet, so he is not a player that I would want. I don’t think he is better than the wingers they already have and that says a lot about him because it isn’t the most difficult thing to be better than Jadon Sancho and Antony. He is predictable and I have to say no to him at Man United. Wherever he goes, the manager needs to make him into a different animal than what he is now.”
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WHAT NEXT? United are expected to be busy in the next transfer window, but a new No.9 is considered to be top of their wish list – amid links to the likes of Harry Kane and Victor Osimhen – and it remains to be seen whether Ten Hag looks to invest heavily again in another option on the flanks.
