Manchester United interested in Ligue 1 defender, a good deal?

Kolkata, August 3: The grapevine in England is that Manchester United are closing to signing Gabriel Magalhaes from Ligue 1 side LOSC Lille and have already contacted the agent of the Brazilian regarding a move.

Magalhaes has also been linked with the likes of Chelsea and Everton in the Premier League, while Napoli and Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain are also believed to be long-term admirers of the Lille star.

Here, we analyse whether he would be a good addition to the Red Devils or not.

Career so far

Gabriel made his move to Lille in 2017 for a fee around £1.5m having made just 21 appearances for Brazilian second-tier side Avai. His Lille career rather had a slow start as he was sent out loan twice, first to French club Troyes, before completing a loan move to Dynamo Zagreb in January 2018. The Brazilian made his return to Stade Pierre-Mauroy ahead of the 2018-19 campaign. He has been key behind Lille's success this season as the club qualified for the Champions League for the first time in seven years.

Style of play

Gabriel has everything in his game to become one of the best and most complete defenders in the world. Standing at 6'3", he is pretty well-built, exactly what we expect in a defender. The Brazilian is also exceptionally strong and imposing and he is also blessed with plenty of pace.

Stats

Magalhaes has won an average of 3.5 aerial duels per game and would be a major upgrade of Victror Lindelof who can be questioned defensively. The 22-year-old has also averaged 1.7 tackles, 0.9 interceptions and 3.3 clearances per game from which it is evident that he is quite solid defensively.