Man Utd transfer news: Italian football expert’s Adrien Rabiot assessment is damning

GiveMeSport

9 August 2022

Italian football expert Mina Rzouki has given a damning assessment of Adrien Rabiot’s qualities as Manchester United attempt to sign the midfielder from Juventus.

United and Juve have a deal in place for the 27-year-old, who moved to Turin from Paris Saint-Germain in 2019.

Per Fabrizio Romano, Man Utd are currently discussing personal terms with Rabiot and the player’s mother/agent, Veronique. Erik ten Hag also spoke with Rabiot over the phone on Monday.

Per Julien Laurens, Ten Hag believes Rabiot can improve United, while the player is understood to be keen on a move to Old Trafford.

But after a summer spent chasing Barcelona’s Frankie de Jong, many United fans appear to be underwhelmed by the potential transfer.

Statman Dave revealed on Twitter that Rabiot was in the bottom 12 per cent of midfielders in Europe last season for progressive passes.

Another graphic broadcast on Sky Sports, meanwhile, showed that the much-maligned Scott McTominay has outperformed Rabiot for passes, pass completion, progressive passes and progressive carries since August 2021.

What did Mina Rzouki say about Adrien Rabiot?

Then, on Tuesday, Rzouki was asked if she’s surprised that Man Utd are looking at Rabiot, who has one year left on his Juventus contract, to solve their midfield problems.

She replied: “Well, especially if he’s being looked upon as the solution to that midfield, then I would be very surprised because I’m yet to really understand what it is that he excels at.

“I think that he may be a complementary figure to what can be a very good midfield, but I wouldn’t put him in a midfield that is struggling to find its identity or isn’t already working in a cohesive unit.

“He’s not dynamic, he’s not particularly fast, his defensive markings can be a little bit off-key, and he hasn’t really excelled at Juventus.

“And yet, he’s still the pick for Didier Deschamps at France and when it comes to [Massimiliano] Allegri, he’s always been noted in the starting line-up, so we know that coaches like him.

“But I struggle to really understand because I’ve rarely looked at him at Juventus and thought: ‘Wow, what a good player’.”

Yikes.

A damning assessment of Rabiot’s playing ability and comments that are likely to make United fans feel even more underwhelmed by the Frenchman’s potential arrival.

But Ten Hag clearly has a very different opinion of the France international, who will cost Man Utd €20 million, according to The Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell.