Is this versatile Manchester United defender set for a move to Spain?

Add as preferred source on Google

Reports in Spain suggest that Villarreal are interested in signing Manchester United defender Marcos Rojo. The Yellow Submarine recently sold centre-back Eric Bailly to United and their search for a replacement has apparently led to the Argentine international.

Rojo moved to Old Trafford for £16 million in the summer of 2014 but has struggled to hold down a place in the first eleven ever since. He has never properly convinced during his time in England and his departure has been anticipated ever since United hired Jose Mourinho as their new manager. Mourinho’s teams are often built upon the foundation of a solid, reliable defence, and Rojo is anything but.

It is also unclear as to what the 26-year-old’s best position is. He has played at both centre-back and left-back for United but didn’t seem particularly comfortable in either. The emergence of Cameron Borthwick-Jackson on the left side of defence, coupled with the return of Luke Shaw, appears to have flattened Rojo’s chances in that position. The arrival of Bailly at centre-half means that the Argentine has now been pushed down the pecking order in both of his favoured positions and he may now be forced to look elsewhere for first-team opportunities.

Embed from Getty Images

Furthermore, there has been a lot of talk that Mourinho is looking to trim down his squad ahead of the new season, and if true, it is likely that Rojo is one of the players he is hoping to get rid of. He is unlikely to fit into the new manager’s preferred playing style and with better options already at the club, a transfer is probably best for both parties.

Rojo made just 15 Premier League starts in 2015/16, and whilst this is mostly due to a shoulder injury which saw him miss three months of the campaign, he found it difficult to force his way past Chris Smalling and Daley Blind as United’s first choice defensive duo.

It all seemed rather strange from the start. Rojo was Louis Van Gaal’s first signing as Manchester United manager, arriving just over a month after he and his Argentina team-mates had knocked Van Gaal’s Netherlands side out of the World Cup. Those who had watched Rojo play for Sporting Lisbon were baffled by United’s interest in him, and some of his performances since have been seen an indictment of the club’s fall from grace.

Admittedly, it has not all been bad. The fact that Rojo started all but two league games at centre-back during his first season at the club would not have happened had he not shown some signs of promise. Some of his best performances in a United shirt game at the beginning of 2015/16 when, after Shaw had been ruled out for the season with a broken leg, Van Gaal turned to Rojo as his stand-in left-back. His performance against Manchester City last October, where he single-handedly marked Kevin De Bruyne out of the game, was particularly impressive and was a glimpse of what he was capable of. The disappointment came when Rojo was injured himself, and upon his return earlier this year he looked off the pace.

Embed from Getty Images

As for Villarreal, following the departure of Bailly and possible loss of Mateo Musacchio; who is being courted by AC Milan, they are looking somewhat thin on the ground in terms of central defenders. Rojo could be the answer to their problems, and in all honesty, his game would probably more suited to the demands of Spanish football.

However, with United reportedly hoping to recoup the majority of the money they spent on the player it looks as though a loan deal may be all Villarreal are willing to offer at this moment. A temporary switch may not be what Rojo himself wants, but it would be the fresh start which he so desperately seems to need.

Featured Image: All rights reserved by Lucero Yahaira Paucar Huaman