United ‘close’ to signing Austrian defender
Manchester United are close to signing Dynamo Kiev defender Aleksander Dragovic, according to Italian news outlet Sport Mediaset.
They claim that a £15.8 million deal between the two clubs is ‘hours away’ from completion and the Austrian international could soon be donning the famous red shirt at Old Trafford.
The 24-year-old has been linked with a move to United in the past and it seems that Louis van Gaal has signed the man he believes can bolster the Red Devils in the centre of defence.
Despite possessing the best defence in the Premier League so far this season, United have been shaky at the back this season, with Chris Smalling the only consistent presence in the back four.
Dragovic will be a familiar name to many European and English football fans as he was part of the Austrian national side that comfortably qualified for Euro 2016 and part of the Dynamo Kiev side that threatened to steal a draw against Chelsea in the Champions League this season.
He has won an Ukranian league title during his time in Kiev and before that, won three straight Swiss league titles with Basel and also played for them during their most successful European campaign to date – a semi-final run in the Europa League during the 2012/13 season.
The arrival of Dragovic at Old Trafford may even allow Daley Blind to be shuffled out of his current role in central defence and shifted up to a more natural position in the centre of midfield.