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Diogo Dalot convinced £65m ace Manchester United wanted will be the best in the world
As if the drama surrounding Erik ten Hag’s future wasn’t enough, Manchester United’s meeting with FC Porto in the Europa League on Thursday night brings forth another few points of discussion.
Diogo Dalot, criticised heavily for the role he played in Tottenham Hotpsur’s breakneck opener during a weekend which appeared to put Ten Hag on the brink, has the chance to respond at the home of the club where he started his career.
And, for the first time, Manchester United will pitch the ever-divisive Andre Onana up against the man who was also high on their list of targets once David de Gea was ushered towards the exit back in 2022.
It is no secret that the Premier League giants were big admirers of Porto’s own Diogo Costa.
Erik ten Hag wanted a goalkeeper capable of playing out from the back. Former coach Benni McCarthy believes that is the main reason why Man United settled on Onana.
Diogo Costa, meanwhile, is another modern number one cut from the same cloth. A penalty-saving specialist with a passing range Paul Scholes would be proud of.
Diogo Dalot hails former Manchester United target Diogo Costa
According to A Bola, however, Porto’s refusal to budge – they would not accept less than the £65 million release clause in Costa’s contract – was further encouragement for Man United to secure a £47 million deal with Inter Milan instead.
Now, with the Cameroon international’s Old Trafford career perennially a case of one step forward and one step back – Onana was blamed by some for Twente’s equaliser against Man United last week despite largely excellent this season to date – the presence of Diogo Costa in the Porto net will lead to more awkward questions being asked about the Red Devils’ recruitment policy should the former outshine the latter at the Estadio do Dragao.
Dalot, meanwhile, has played alongside Costa both for the Portuguese national team and in Porto’s youth ranks.
“We’ve already spoken, of course,” Dalot tells A Bola. “As soon as the draw came out, we knew it would be a special game. He’s a long-time friend, so of course we keep in touch, and there’s always some mischief.
“He knows it’s a big game for him too, for the club. For anyone who likes football, it’s going to be a great game to watch.”
Dalot says Costa can become the world’s best goalkeeper
Dalot has no doubt that Costa – Porto’s captain was likened to Manuel Neuer and Thibaut Courtois during a stellar European Championship – will soon be considered by the majority as one of the planet’s finest all-round goalkeepers.
The Man United right-back is also aware of the rumours that had linked his compatriot with a move to England’s north west.
“Of course, he has been mentioned in the past,” Dalot adds. “Not only [with regards to Man United], but also with several major European clubs.
“I have no doubt that he has the potential to be one of the best goalkeepers in the world. I maintain my opinion; he is already one of the best, but he will certainly be the best. He decides the timing, he will make his own decisions.
“If he stays his entire career at FC Porto, it will also be good for me, as a Porto fan. But he has more than enough capacity to be one of the best, as he has shown.”
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