When Erik ten Hag fielded Jonny Evans alongside Willy Kambwala in Manchester United's 2-0 defeat against West Ham last month, he reached double figures in an unfortunate category. Even before the halfway point of the season, Ten Hag had used ten different centre-back partnerships (TNT Sports), a reflection of the extent of United's injuries in that area. Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire have all had spells on the sidelines.
While some may argue that Ten Hag and United will be fine once his options return, the club's woes may also indicate the need to invest in more reliable players going forward, and they've seemingly identified a serious target in Lille's Leny Yoro.
A product of the club's youth academy, teenager Yoro made his Ligue 1 debut at the end of the 2021/22 season and then truly broke into the side last term, playing 15 games in all competitions (Transfermarkt). Now he's managed to play his way onto the radar of 20-time Premier League champions United.
United enter talks for Yoro
French outlet Le10Sport reports that, alongside fierce English rivals Manchester City and Liverpool, United are one of three clubs to 'formalise discussions' with Lille in the last month. United has tried to "speed up" the process by asking what kind of offer will be required to launch negotiations.
They've been told that they'll have to table a bid in excess of £60.4m, and while that's £77.6m less than Lille have demanded from PSG, United will "never" consider meeting the demands. Jim Ratcliffe, who recently acquired 25% of the club from the Glazers and owns Lille's French rivals Nice, has apparently ruled out any "major investment" into the squad during this month's transfer window.
The stats show Yoro could pay off the fee in the long term
You can certainly see why Yoro has caught the eye of so many elite clubs. Under-23 scout Antonio Mango has described him as "immense" and likened him to a young version of Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk, while journalist Zach Lowy believes he's already "one of the best defenders in France" despite his youth. His inclusion in SofaScore's under-21 team of the year for 2023 would appear to support that assessment.
Yoro has started 15 of Lille's 17 Ligue 1 games this season, indicating the unique level of trust he's earned from manager Paulo Fonseca. Indeed, he's played a higher percentage of his team's minutes so far in 2023/24 than any other 18-year-old in Europe's top-five leagues (FBRef).
Part of the reason for his continued involvement is no doubt his excellent contribution on the ball. He sits 11th in the league for passes completed (891) and he's doing so with the 10th-best success rate (90.7%). He could be invaluable to Ten Hag as a tool to play out from the back, in a similar vein to how Martinez was before his injury.
Yoro is now a France under-21 international, having made his debut in October, and already looks destined to represent his country at the senior level. While you can perhaps understand why United are reluctant to part with so much money for a player in his first season of weekly starts, he clearly has the potential to pay off that investment – and then some – long-term.