It’s LindelON again.
To recap this mini-transfer saga: Last week, the noises coming from Portugal were that Victor Lindelöf, Benfica’s 22-year-old central defender of some repute, was joining Manchester United in a matter of weeks. The deal was being treated as a formality, and there were even suggestions that squad numbers had already been discussed.
As for the player himself, he was happy to pose with a United fan in his native Sweden, and sign the famous red jersey…
But fast forward to this week and the BBC were poo-poo’ing the transfer that everyone assumed was in the bag. They claimed with some authority that Jose Mourinho had decided not to follow up his interest in a player who would cost a whopping £38m.
According to the Beeb, the unlikely partnership of Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo had done such a sterling job of marshalling the United backline that Mourinho’s immediate urgency for defensive recruitments had calmed. It was very much a case of Victor LindelOFF.
But not to be bowed, the Portuguese press have now doubled down on their original reports, and claim that the BBC update is balderdash and piffle. A Bola in particular claim that the English story is merely a negotiation tactic by United to get Benfica to reduce the terms of the deal.
Either way, someone’s source is providing duff information. We’ll know who soon enough.
Victor Lindelöf has been included in Benfica's squad for tonight's game vs Paços in the Taça da Liga. He's expected to start on the bench. pic.twitter.com/cV8BErruBf
— Jan Freðrik Hagen (@JanFHagen) December 29, 2016
A Bola claim, despite BBC reporting the contrary, that Lindelöf to Man United is still on, as the clubs already have a €45m agreement. pic.twitter.com/Cm1oqBNEq1
— Jan Freðrik Hagen (@JanFHagen) December 29, 2016
A Bola says that Benfica haven't heard anything official from Man United about wanting to back out of the Lindelöf deal, as reported by BBC. pic.twitter.com/nBqRKygYoK
— Jan Freðrik Hagen (@JanFHagen) December 29, 2016
A Bola thinks BBC's article about Mourinho not wanting Lindelöf anymore is Man United trying to pressure Benfica to lower the transfer fee. pic.twitter.com/zTYwUqxrvg
— Jan Freðrik Hagen (@JanFHagen) December 29, 2016
