“I joined Manchester United because of him, he’s the only player I desperately want to play with”: Manchester United’s new signing Partick Dorgu has named ONE United’s player who was the reason he join the club
Manchester United have signed Lecce and Denmark left-back Patrick Dorgu in a deal worth in the region of £29million.
The 20-year-old, considered one of the most promising young wing-backs in European football, has put pen to paper on a five-and-a-half year contract at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils prioritised strengthening the left side of Ruben Amorim’s defence heading into the January transfer window, in part due to Luke Shaw’s persistent injury woes over the last two seasons.
Dorgu becomes the first signing of Amorim’s reign as head coach and the sixth new recruit since Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s partial takeover of United 12 months ago.
Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt, Joshua Zirkzee and Noussair Mazraoui all completed moves to the Theatre of Dreams last summer with INEOS at the helm.
Dorgu appeared to wave goodbye to Lecce’s supporters after the side’s 3-1 win over Parma on Friday night before catching a flight to Manchester the following morning to complete a medical.
‘I am incredibly proud to be able to call myself a Manchester United player; this is a very special day for my whole family,’ he said after the transfer was confirmed on Sunday.
‘I cannot wait to work with Ruben Amorim; his vision for this team and the future of the club is incredibly exciting.
‘There is a clear plan set out for my development, and I feel that Manchester United is the perfect place to fulfil my potential and complete my huge ambitions.’
Dorgu’s tactical flexibility and versatility stood out as United scoured the market for a full-back who would be suited to the 3-4-3 system implemented by Amorim since his arrival from Sporting.
The Dane impressed on both flanks after breaking into Lecce’s first-team in August 2023, consistently causing opposition defenders problems in Serie A with his pace and power in the final third.
He featured in all but two of Lecce’s league games at this midway point of the campaign, racking up two goals and assist in the Italian top flight.
In total, Dorgu made 57 appearances in all competitions for Lecce, while picking up four caps for the senior Denmark national side.
United fought off stiff competition to capture Dorgu’s services, with Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis reported to have made an unsuccessful verbal offer for the youngster last month.
The big-money sale represents a significant profit for Lecce, who signed Dorgu from the Nordsjaelland’s academy for a fee of just €200,000 (£167,000) in 2022.
It’s understood Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez, 21, and Paris Saint-Germain’s Nuno Mendes, 22, were also under consideration before United ramped up their efforts to sign Dorgu this winter.
United remain in the hunt for attacking reinforcements and are eyeing a potential move for Mathys Tel, just days after the Bayern Munich forward turned down a switch to Tottenham.
Marcus Rashford meanwhile looks set to finally leave Old Trafford with Villa Park his destination, while at the same time United are weighing up a move for Aston Villa winger Leon Bailey.
