Manchester United are reportedly considering a move for 20-year-old Lecce full-back Patrick Dorgu, who is already highly rated by compatriot Rasmus Hojlund.
After joining Lecce in 2022, young defender Dorgu has quickly developed into one of Serie A's most sought-after star players. He was voted Denmark's Talent of the Year by fellow pros – including Red Devils striker Hojlund for 2024 and spotlighted the top clubs in the Premier League.
Both Tottenham and Chelsea are said to be courting Dorgu in the summer transfer window, and Liverpool, who are desperate for stronger left-back cover as Andy Robertson enters the twilight of his career, have also been linked.
But despite this, the 20-year-old, who is valued at £42million, has seemingly found his way onto United's radar.
During the latter stages of 2024, Dorgu received the most votes from his fellow Danish stars, including United striker Hojlund, to claim the Talent of the Year award – an award the Red Devils won in 2023.
The marksman, who was displaced by Dorgu, would obviously welcome a move if his vote for the defender is taken into account, but he is not the only one who sees him as a talent for the future.
Lecce sporting director Pantaleo Corvino also admitted in December that while he insists the player will remain at his club this month, he knows he is a 'potential champion' and one of the most versatile and promising youngsters there are.
“Dorgu is a potential champion. Correction: he is a champion,” Corvino told Gazzetta dello Sport. “Left or right winger, he runs like three players and can find the goal.” Excitingly for United fans, who will see players working much harder under Ruben Amorim, Corvino added: “He has an engine that no one else has.”
This message, sent not just to United but to everyone who has apparently taken an interest in the player, should be welcomed – and Corvino was quick to acknowledge that such admirers do indeed exist.
“A player like him naturally has admirers, and there are plenty of them, even abroad. But Dorgu will stay here, and then we will talk about it this summer, because his fate is already decided – his future belongs to him.”
Despite the director's firm stance that Dorgu would remain at Lecce this season, Give Me Sport reported that if Amorim's side were to make a move for the wide defender, it would be 'unlikely' that he would reject such a transfer .
Amorim has struggled to find a player who can take on one of the wing-back roles so crucial to his system, with Noussair Mazraoui not standing out and Diogo Dalot – fresh from a send-off against Arsenal in the FA Cup – likely to be as well lower in his estimates.
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