Manchester City rode to the top, Liverpool Chelsea firmly in the top three, this season's Premier League momentum is basically fixed. And that's a bit of a shock for the ambitious Red Devils Manchester United at the beginning of the season. Now in the standings, Manchester United has scored 31 points in 18 rounds of matches (3 games less) and ranked 7th, which is a huge gap of 22 points from the city rivals at the top of the table, and it is hopeless to win the championship.
On paper, Manchester United, with world-class players such as De Gea, Varane, Maguire, Pogba, Bruno Fernandes, Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo, will not be much worse than the Premier League's top three, and there are many reasons for this season's poor record, one of the most important of which is that they lack a strong back that can stand alone in midfield. So next, reinforcements in this position will be a top priority for United. According to the Sun, Manchester United are willing to pay 100 million pounds to buy West Ham United's young England international Rice.
Born in 1999, Rice is only 22 years old, but is already an absolute main defender for England and West Ham United. Back in the 2018/19 season, Rice was the most successfully shoveled player under 20 in the Premier League. In this round of 3-2 away win over Crystal Palace, Rice, who delivered one assist, ushered in his 150th Premier League milestone and became the youngest Premier League player in the history of the Hammers, and this record can also be ranked 14th in the Premier League.
Rice is 1.85 meters tall, has strong physical fitness and confrontation ability, and the defensive interception data is very prominent. This season, he ranks fifth among all Premier League players in terms of steals and has scored 1 goal and 4 assists, averaging 2.32 steals, 1.84 interceptions and 1.32 clearances per game. What is even more rare is that Rice is not only defensively strong, but also quite good at the ball from defense to attack. So far this season, he has delivered 1,058 passes and 16 key passes, with a pass success rate of 90%, making it a well-deserved offensive and defensive conversion hub for West Ham United.
Of course, among the young generation of good defenders in England, there is also Leeds United's Phillips, but the latter as Leeds United's authentic youth player and team flag, coupled with the white rose army and the red devils' historical feud, Man lenovo signed him is obviously not a solution for money. Although Rice is also extremely expensive, there is still hope after all.
Today's Manchester United, in the back position of Matic, McTominay and Fred, 3 people have their own characteristics but are not perfect, Matic covers a large area and the ball is accurate, but the age is high, Wheat can fight to grab the ball, Fred's positive foot skills are also good, but confrontation is not his strength. So in the Ole Gunnar Solskjaer era, McTominay and Fred are both starting together, and the two complement each other's characteristics and perform well, but it is really not enough to let them play alone in the back.
On the other hand, Rice, although only 22 years old, almost has the advantages of Manchester United's three major backs, and if he can come to Old Trafford, the promotion of Manchester United's midfield will be visible to the naked eye. Another benefit of his arrival is that United no longer have to suffer for Pogba. The reason why Manchester United still has illusions about the French midfielder today is that it is difficult to give up his comprehensiveness, provided that the attack can be organized to complete a fatal pass, and the retraction can take the ball and connect the whole team. If Rice arrives, United's defensive and ball-scoring problems in midfield will be solved, with Sancho and B Fee joining forces in front of them, and organizing passes will not be a problem. In this case, Pogba can go well without sending.