The genius Serie A summer swap transfer deal that Man Utd must go all out for

Sometimes, over the course of a summer transfer window, the deals just happen to line up like dominoes in a train. First, one falls, and then, in doing so, creates a vacuum that invites the toppling of the next, and so on and so forth. Take, for example, West Ham’s recent hunt for a full-back.

The Hammers had, for some time, been linked with a prospective swoop for Manchester United defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka. Instead, however, Julen Lopetegui’s side look to have opted to move for Bayern Munich star Noussair Mazraoui. The Moroccan international is understood to be closing in on a transfer to East London, with a full agreement edging ever closer to completion.

In turn, this frees up Wan-Bissaka to seek a fresh challenge elsewhere. It has long been suggested that the 26-year-old would leave Old Trafford this summer, with United in the midst of a tentative rebuild under the guidance of new investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe. And now that his potential move to West Ham looks to be dead in the water, the Daily Mail report that he could be on his way to Inter Milan instead.

More than that, the Mail believe that United have revisited the idea of using Wan-Bissaka as a makeweight in a possible swap deal involving Dutch full-back Denzel Dumfries. The Red Devils have been credited with an interest in the Inter defender for some time, and both his and Wan-Bissaka’s respective contracts set to expire next year, there is an optimism that an agreement involving some kind of exchange may be viable.

Of course, there is the matter of a discrepancy in valuations to consider - United are looking for around £15 million for Wan-Bissaka, while Dumfries reportedly has a price tag of around £26 million - but if the Red Devils are willing to send over a wedge of cash alongside their player, then there is no reason to believe that a mutually beneficial arrangement couldn’t be thrashed out.

And if they can get a deal over the line, then surely this would be a savvy piece of business for Erik ten Hag’s side. Not only do they bring in a long term target, but they would do so while freeing up space on their wage bill and offloading a player who has long since been dismissed as surplus to requirements.

For his part, Dumfries would offer an awful lot to United’s project too. Naturally more attacking than Wan-Bissaka, the Netherlands international is capable of playing as a forward-thinking wing-back as well as a more orthodox defensive presence. Last season, he registered 10 goal involvements (four goals and six assists) across 36 outings in all competitions. Comparatively, Wan-Bissaka managed just three assists last term.

Dumfries may not be as defensively imperious as his counterpart, but he is no slouch either, and you suspect that Ten Hag would be willing to sacrifice a little bit of conservative solidity in favour of a player with the ability to bomb on and properly trouble opposition back lines. To that end, it feels like the Dutchman would be a notable upgrade on what United already have, and if there is a deal to be struck here, then the Red Devils should be going all out to make it happen.