Man U now likely ahead of Chelsea in race for €80m lynchpin who could unlock new formation | OneFootball

Ruben Amorim’s move to become Manchester United manager is a really fascinating one.

He seems like a top coach, and was surely someone strongly considered by Chelsea before we eventually appointed Enzo Maresca. So we will be following his progress with interest.

One notable advantage of bringing in the Sporting Club de Portugal coach is getting a potential advantage in signing some of his former players – there’s always a long queue of talent at the Jose Alvalade. One very popular name right now is Ousmane Diomande. The 20 year central defender has been linked endlessly with Chelsea over the last few months. Could this change in the balance of power affect things? It looks like it.

Despite having “extensively scouted” the defender, we’re still not going to get into a bidding war with a desperate Man U if it comes down to it. That’s just now how we roll now.

Ousmane Diomande in league action for Sporting. (Photo by Gualter Fatia/Getty Images)

Chelsea could miss out of Diomande

Today CaughtOffside have a piece claiming that Diomande is now a top target or Man U as Amorim looks to bring over one of his old lynchpins to try and get the 343 formation he had so much success with going at Old Trafford.

Chelsea are in a strong position here – they’ve got good defenders already, and while they’re clearly interested in upgrading, they’re in no rush. They won’t get held to ransom by any crazy demands, and can make sure that when they do choose to deploy their resources, it’s on the right player.

United, on the other hand, are looking far more likely to panic spend in January as they look to give their new coach some backing and to kick start their season. Whether that means they trigger Diomande’s €80m release clause is the real question. If they hold back, expect Chelsea to get in the mix before too long.