Manchester United tipped as surprise potential suitors for Tottenham star
An ex-Spurs man has raised this potential worry...
Tottenham’s on-loan defensive midfielder Joao Palhinha has been tipped as a potential transfer target for Manchester United.
The Portugal international is currently on loan at Spurs from Bayern Munich for the season, and it remains to be seen if he’ll end up staying in north London permanently.
Still, one imagines a fair few Tottenham fans would quite like to see Palhinha stay at the club beyond his loan as he’s been an impressive performer so far, just like he was during his previous stint in the Premier League with Fulham.
MORE: Man United eyeing Brazilian sensation to fix problem position
Man United could arguably also do with a midfielder like this as well, though, and former Spurs star Pedro Mendes is concerned that a move to Old Trafford could be something to watch out for.
Manchester United to swoop for Joao Palhinha transfer?
Speaking to Boyle Sports, Mendes discussed his fellow countryman’s future, and suggested he could be an upgrade on Manuel Ugarte in the current United midfield.
The Red Devils have been linked with Palhinha before, and Mendes feels it could still be one to watch.
“Palhinha at Man Utd? Well, why not?” he said.
“To be fair, I think Manuel Ugarte is more or less the same type of player as Palhinha. [But] Palhinha is an option if they want to replace him.
“We are not sure what is going to happen to Casemiro, so I think it (Manchester United signing Palhinha) could work.”
While it could make sense for United to consider Palhinha, his age will perhaps count against him as it’s just hard to see a deal being good value for money.
Ruben Amorim also already has enough of an issue in that department as Casemiro looks like struggling to play 90 minutes week in, week out at this stage of his career.
Our understanding is that Elliot Anderson to Man Utd could be one to watch, with MUFC confident a deal could be done without spending crazy money on the Nottingham Forest and England star.
Pedro Mendes on Joao Palhinha’s qualities
Mendes went on to praise Palhinha’s qualities, even if he perhaps wasn’t quite the right stylistic fit for Bayern Munich.
“Joao Palhinha is the typical Premier League number six, that defensive midfielder who just sweeps up everything in front of the defenders,” Mendes said.
“If you have a team that has a lot of possession, he’s a little bit out of his game, from my point of view.
“The players around him will shine more than him because, as you said, he just wins the ball, passes it away, tackles the ball, passes it. He’s fantastic at doing that role. He was fantastic at Fulham.
“At Bayern Munich, when you have 70% or 60% of ball possession most of the games, you don’t need to do that kind of job.
“Because normally teams play counter-attack or don’t have that type of possession against you, his strength is a little bit forgotten.
“He has more of the ball and he needs to be more involved in the game, and to be fair, it’s not his main strength.
“So probably that’s why he struggled at Bayern and at Spurs at the moment. I like what I saw in some games this year from him, but it’s different from Fulham.”