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Forget Jadon Sancho, Manchester United need to invest in defense to become title contenders.
This is the opinion of Jason McAteer, who believes the Red Devils are a long way from reaching second place.
Any hope of United being a contender for the title was subjected to a brutal reality check by Crystal Palace last weekend.
Talking about the title may not be something the 13-time winners can think of right now given their 3-1 loss to Crystal Palace in their 2020/21 Premier League opener.
However, expectations remain high at Old Trafford and United will want to build on their third place finish last season.
United signed Donny van de Beek earlier this summer and have long been obsessed with landing England striker Jadon Sancho.
Sancho is understood to be interested in a move, but Borussia Dortmund insist he will not leave this summer.
Jamie O’Hara says Manchester United paying £ 100m for Jadon Sancho would be ‘wrong’ and ‘really stupid’
But McAteer believes chasing Sancho is a waste of energy for United, as there are more pressing issues on their hands, such as signing a defender and a defensive midfielder.
McAteer told FreeSuperTips: “With Manchester United, even if they signed Jadon Sancho, they couldn’t compete for the title.
“Currently, they don’t have enough to get into the top two. If they can bring in Sancho, add a couple more defenders and maybe a change of goalkeeper, then they can be certain contenders. “
United invested heavily in defense last summer, signing center back Harry Maguire for £ 80 million, a record fee for a defender, as well as right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
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Maguire has struggled to live up to its high price tag so far
However, McAteer does not believe Maguire is the answer to help United rivals Liverpool and Manchester City.
He added: “I really care about Manchester United on defense. Everyone is capable of giving away opportunities; I’m not a huge fan of Harry Maguire.
“He hasn’t settled properly in Manchester, I’m not sure if it’s about not having a secure partner by his side, his partnership with Victor Lindelof still seems a bit weak, or not having a left-back who is consistent in the team every week that you can trust.
“I feel like any team that faces them will feel like they have a chance because of their defensive weaknesses and their lack of a good enough central defensive midfielder. There are problems in those areas and that is where they need to be strengthened the most.
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