It wasn’t the first summer signing most Manchester United fans had hoped for, but Victor Lindelof could turn out to be a very shrewd purchase by Jose Mourinho.United confirmed the deal via their official website on Saturday evening. The English giants will pay Benfica £30.7 million for the 22-year-old Sweden international.Lindelof is expected to become one of United’s two first-choice centre-backs alongside Eric Bailly, who was the Red Devils’ first signing of last summer. Mourinho reportedly feels the two defenders could be the club’s centre-back pairing for the next decade.United’s fans will certainly be hoping that’s the case.
The same thing was once said about Phil Jones and Chris Smalling but both players are now in danger of being axed from Mourinho’s squad following a frustrating 2016-17 campaign.
Video: Lindelof in action
For those who haven’t seen much - or anything - of Lindelof yet, here’s a short compilation video showing what he’s all about.
One of the first things you’ll notice is how two-footed he is. Lindelof is a natural footballer, comfortable in possession.
He also senses danger and knows how to make his presence felt on the pitch.
You can understand why some fans reckon he could be the Nemanja Vidic to Bailly’s Rio Ferdinand.
Gary Neville posts funny tweet after Lindelof announcement
When United announced the the signing of Lindelof on Twitter, Gary Neville gave the tweet a retweet.
However, Man Utd isn’t the only club that occupies a space in Neville’s heart these days.
The Sky Sports pundit also loves Salford City - he co-owns the club along with a few of his ex-United teammates - and one of his followers thought for a second that the non-league club had just announced the signing of Lindelof.
We’re not sure how he got that one mixed up, but there you go.
Anyway, Neville then posted a funny response to the tweet from Richard Holden: “We let United have this one!!”
We’re sure Lindelof was tempted by the idea of playing in front of 2,000 fans in the National League North, Gaz.
One Man City fan then cheekily suggested Salford will be able to snap up Lindelof on loan in 12 month’s time.
Barring a disastrous debut season at Old Trafford, it’s fair to assume that won’t be the case.