Why Jose Mourinho Is Desperate To Sign Ivan Perisic At All Costs
According to latest reports from Goal.com, Manchester United are close to completing the transfer of Ivan Perisic from Inter Milan. The report claims that the 28-year old winger is likely to cost the Red Devils £40.4million in transfer fees and a move is likely to be announced in the coming week.
Perisic has been pursued relentlessly by Jose Mourinho’s side over the last two months, but they weren’t able to strike up an agreement with the Italian side over a transfer fee. However, all things seem to have been sorted out now and the Croatian international is soon expected to be a United player.
The 28-year old was identified as a key target Jose, for the all-round value that he will be bringing to the team. Perisic is an experienced winger who possesses blistering pace that will make him very valuable to the United side, given Mourinho’s penchant to set his team up to play on the counter.
The Red Devils were hindered by the lack of effectiveness in the final third last season, which led them to drawing as many as 15 league games – a club record. Had they managed to win those matches, they could very well have been challenging Chelsea at the top of the table. Having brought in the league’s second highest goal-scorer from last season, Romelu Lukaku, the club have taken a step towards addressing that issue and Perisic too will be of great aid when it comes to that matter.
The Croatian international scored 11 goals last season and set up 8 more for his teammates in the 2016/17 season – the tally being almost twice as highest by any United player, with Zlatan Ibrahimović being an exception. Perisic averaged a total of 2.9 shots per game last season for Inter and his average of 2.1 shots per game from within the penalty box was the highest by any non-striker in the Serie A, highlighting the threat and danger that he will possess from operating on the flanks.
Perisic also possesses a strong and sturdy frame which will make him a suitable fit to the Premier League and will add further bulk to a Manchester United lineup that already possesses a great physical edge to itself. And then there is the element of defensive work-rate as well. It is no secret that Jose wants his wingers to work their socks off defensively as well, and the Inter wide man will be able to offer just that. In all ways, Perisic is an out and out classic Mourinho type of player – so it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that United are going all out to capture him.
Another key aspect that United seemed to lack last season was the element of natural wing play. Most of the players that Jose used on the flanks, be it Juan Mata, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Anthony Martial, Jesse Lingard or Marcus Rashford, are not natural wingers by any sense. Each player prefers to cut inside and occupy a more central position from out wide, which led to ineffectiveness in the wide areas and a certain imbalance to the attack.
However, with Perisic, that is another area of concern that will be taken care of. While he may be very well adept at cutting inside from the flanks and posing problems, the 28-year old also offers the added element of stretching the play by hugging the touchlines and running at speed. This in turn, will offer more space in the final third for the central players like Lukaku and Mkhitaryan to exploit.
Moreover, his ability to hit in crosses with great accuracy is another aspect that will add a new dimension to the United attack. Last season, Perisic played a total of 203 crosses in the Serie A, averaging close to 6 crosses per game. In comparison, United’s Mata attempted 93 cross in 25 games, Martial played 56 crosses in 25 games while Mkhitaryan stood at 48 in 24 league games and Lingard had 26 crosses in 25 league games.
| Perisic | Lingard | Mata | Mkhitaryan | Martial | |
| Games | 36 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 25 |
| Crosses | 203 | 26 | 93 | 48 | 56 |
| Crosses Per Game | 5.64 | 1.04 | 3.72 | 2 | 2.24
|
The difference is there for everyone to see. And with United now adding Lukaku to their strike-force, this aspect of Perisic’s game becomes even more important. Lukaku, since 2012-13, has scored the third-highest number of goals from headers (18), next only to Olivier Giroud (25) and Christian Benteke (23). Last season, 6 of his 25 league goals were from headers – that is almost a quarter of his tally. Adding the 28-year old Inter Milan man will make the supply line from wide areas much more effective, which could get more out of Lukaku.
While this is one aspect of what Perisic will be adding to the team, which will no doubt improve things for United in front of goal, his all-round abilities are what make him a valuable addition to the squad. Perisic may not be the marquee signing that will blow away the minds of the fans, but he fits in extremely well with the mould of players that Jose likes to work with. He has all the characteristics to make this United team better.
** All stats from WhoScored.com