Man United ponder making a move for Dele-Bashiru as club looks to rebuild its midfield

ENGLISH Premier League giants Manchester United are planning to make a move for Super Eagles midfielder Fisayo Dele-Bashiru as part of a rebuilding programme aimed at equipping them to challenge for the title next season.

Dele-Bashiru, 25, who featured for Nigeria yesterday in a friendly game against Portugal, currently plies his trade with Serie A outfit Lazio. British-born, he began his playing career at the Manchester City academy before moving on to Sheffield Wednesday in 2020, before he moved abroad, with sojourns in Turkey and now Italy.

Now, Dele-Bashiru may be returning to England as Manchester United have added him to their shortlist of midfielders they are looking to sign this summer. Having signed Brazilian midfielder Ederson from Atalanta for £30m, Man United are looking for two more midfielders after releasing Casemiro and placing Uruguayan star Manuel Ugarte on the transfer shortlist.

Man United are interested in the likes of Elliot Anderson, Mateus Fernandes and Carlos Baleba but their price tags remain huge obstacles in each of the three cases. This has led to the club turning its attention to Dele-Bashiru, with Transfermarkt estimating his current value at €6m.

In his two years at Lazio, Dele-Bashiru has produced occasional flashes of brilliance but the club’s supporters believe these were too few and far between. His statistics show seven goals and four assists in 57 appearances, with the majority coming off the bench.

When he first arrived at Lazio, Dele-Bashiru caught the eye of his strong physical skills but then-Lazio head coach Marco Baroni urged him to improve his tactical awareness. He insisted that the player needs to become a ball-winner as he is often closed down by the opposition who do not give him the chance to drive forward.

Although he has made some improvements over the past two seasons, Dele-Bashiru still has not reached the required level, as neither Baroni nor his successor, Maurizio Sarri, gave him a starting role. One could argue that he is simply not cut out for the tactically nuanced Italian football and would instead find a natural habitat by returning to England.