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Manchester United are monitoring Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa as the club considers a number of options to improve their defensive line.
Ekrem Konur (ESPN) reveals that United are “monitoring the situation” of the 26-year-old, but Premier League rivals Chelsea are joining the hunt.
💣💥#EXCL | 🏴♥♥♥♥♥♥ | Manchester United and Chelsea are monitoring the situation of Aston Villa’s 26-year-old English defender, Ezri Konsa. 🔵#AVFC🔴#MUFC🔵#CFC pic.twitter.com/AA7mC7wlC7
– Ekrem KONUR (@Ekremkonur) January 8, 2024
Defense has been something of an Achilles heel for Erik ten Hag this season.
Injuries have ruled out his four starting centre-backs (Lisandro Martínez, Victor Lindelöf, Harry Maguire and Raphael Varane) at different times, forcing the Dutchman to form a partnership with Jonny Evans and Willy Kambwala for the recent trip to the West. Ham.
Similarly, Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia have been unavailable for much of the season due to injuries, with the club relying on a hastily agreed loan deal for Sergio Reguilon to provide cover. That loan has already been terminated and the Spaniard returned to Tottenham Hotspur.
Diogo Dalot will therefore be relied on in the short term to cover the left-back position as neither Shaw nor Malacia are fully fit at the moment. The Portuguese full-back has been a rare point of consistency for Ten Hag, with United’s other right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka also suffering a long-term injury earlier in the year.
Konsa, who has impressed this season for Aston Villa, is capable of playing at both centre-back and right-back. He is a physically imposing defender, with good recovery speed and competent technical ability.
Under Unai Emery, Villa play with one of the highest defensive lines in the league, often leaving their defenders in precarious positions on the field. However, Konsa’s pace makes him perfectly suited for this system; in a way that players like Maguire and Lindelof are not.
The 26-year-old has been selected by Emery for every Premier League match this season, having replaced Tyrone Mings, he would be ruled out for the year with an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
Ten Hag is trying to implement a high-pressing style at Old Trafford. He wants his team to dominate transitions, forcing as many turnovers as high up the pitch as possible, so that United’s forwards can quickly capitalize on them.
A high line – one that immobilizes the opposition by initiating counter-pressure in its own camp – is crucial to this ambition.
As such, a defenseman who has thrived on one of the league’s top lines would be a welcome addition. The fact that he can also play at right back and has an excellent injury history would be another strength that is not necessarily present in the United squad at the moment.
