Lille defender Leny Yoro’s move to Manchester United was confirmed on Thursday afternoon in a deal estimated to be worth over £50million.
The 18-year-old centre back completed his medical at United on Wednesday, and soon after became their second signing of the summer after the arrival of Joshua Zirkee.
The young defender will be fighting for a spot in Erik ten Hag‘s first team ahead of their Premier League season opener against Fulham at Old Trafford on August 16, and there is also question of who will be his partner.
The move comes amid the departures of central defenders Raphael Varane and Willy Kambwala, with the United manager searching for replacements for the pair.
Mail Sport takes a look at Yoro’s defensive numbers and how they match up with the rest of the Red Devils’ defenders’ stats.
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Raphael Varane
These are the shoes the French teenager will have to fill. Varane was once the hottest defensive prodigy in football himself, and Ten Hag will be hoping his fellow Frenchman can be a direct replacement for the departed centre back.
Varane made 22 appearances for Manchester United last season, playing 1371 minutes and being on the pitch for 13 wins in what was a mixed campaign.
23 goals were conceded during the games in which he featured, with the Frenchman averaging 59.6 minutes per goal conceded, achieving only three clean sheets in that time.
It’s not quite the 13 clean sheets Yoro obtained in his 32 appearances last season at Lille, and the teenager’s numbers also better Varane elsewhere.
In terms of passing, 24 progressive passes were made by Varane, compared to the 42 Yaro made, while Varane had a pass accuracy of 89.3 per cent and carry progress of 1626.9 metres, falling short of Yaro’s 92.2 and 2167.7 for the same categories.
There did, however, come a time for Varane to trump his successor – he was only been dribbled past by an opponent four times in comparison to Yaro’s 14 times.
Another area of success for Varane’s was in the air. He won 80.8 per cent of his duels, beating Yoro’s 64.8 per cent.
Raphael Varane will undoubtedly leave an absence when he – and his experience – leaves club
In all of Varane’s appearances in the 2023-24 season, he made 86 clearances and 18 blocks for United, also winning 43 ground duels with a 68.3 per cent success rate, adding to the 67 times he has won possession of the ball.
Some of Varane’s numbers will leave Ten Hag wondering if his new signing can challenge the figures and fill in the gap his absence will undoubtedly leave, but, with scope to improve, Yoro has time on his side to match up to the former World Cup winner.
Lisandro Martinez
The Argentina star Manchester United in July 2022, making his debut a couple of weeks later, and is expected to be working alongside newcomer Yoro.
In his second season at the club, Martinez held a defensive record of no clean sheets and 12 goals conceded, though those numbers came in just 11 games and 648 minutes.
The 26-year-old spent much of the last season coping with injury, first a knee injury sustained in his side’s 3-0 win over Brentford in March, and then a calf strain shortly after returning.
Lisandro Martinez was unfortunate to miss much of the last season due to persistent injury
The centre back did maintain a passing accuracy of 93 per cent – narrowly above new signing Yoro’s – and made 15 progressive passes in his brief spell on the pitch, logging a total carry progress of 748.3m which was not far off the other defenders in the squad.
In terms of duels, Martinez put up 12 tackles and five interceptions, though he made 23 clearances and seven blocks for his side, winning possession 33 times.
Yet, these figures, when stacked up against new signing Yoro, put the Argentinian defender in a tricky position.
Yoro made 36 tackles – over double the 12 Martinez managed – and 97 clearances, almost three times more than the United centre back. Put his figures into perspective with his 11 appearances due to injury, and they looks significantly better.
When the figures should also be put alongside Yoro, and the image of what United’s new-look defence could appear like opens up – Martinez will likely be a part of Ten Hag’s plans going forward if he can stay fit.
The Argentine defender has since returned to full fitness and helped win the Copa America
Jonny Evans
The Northern Irish defender made his club debut in 2007 and it was recently announced he had signed a new one-year contract to keep him at United until June 2025.
Last season saw the player make 23 appearances and spend 1396 minutes on the pitch, conceding 24 goals and keeping two clean sheets.
This is a stark difference to the 13 clean sheets Yoro kept during his time as defender for Lille, but on the ground and in the air there were differences.
On the ground, Evans made 22 tackles with a success rate of 63.6 per cent, which was not quite the success rate of 69.4 per cent Yoro managed to log from his 36 tackles.
In the air, Evans’s rate was better than Yoro’s. 66.7 per cent of the time he won an aeriel duel, successful in 36 of the 54 duels. Yoro’s stood at a 64.8 per cent.
Jonny Evans was signed at late notice at the start of last season but proved his mettle amid a difficult season for Ten Hag
It is again redemption, however, when it comes to being dribbled past by opponents, with Evans only passed nine times, winning possession of the ball 70 times.
Harry Maguire
Maguire, who missed out on a shot in the England Euro 2024 squad due to a calf injury, made 22 appearances in 1650 minutes for his club last season.
In that time, he conceded 29 goals and kept four clean sheets, with the average minute of goals conceded being 56.9. The centre back was also been dribbled past by an opponent 10 times, still less than new signing Yoro.
But the Englishman did have the second highest overall number of passes with 1096, and a pass accuracy of 83.4 per cent to go with a carry progress of 2135.8m, making 67 progressive passes.
The centre back also had success with duels. 69 out of 88 aerial duels were won, and 24 tackles made, giving an aerial success rate of 78.4 per cent and tackle success of 70.8 per cent.
Harry Maguire was another defender that Ten Hag did not expect to utilise as much as he did
Maguire therefore came out on top when it comes to aerial duels, completely overtaking the figures Yoro produced in his season at Lille.
He cuts it close in terms of tackles too, with his overall success rate being higher than that of the new United signing – despite the initial number of tackles being smaller.
Maguire was also been credited with 83 clearances, 24 blocks, and 25 interceptions, with possession won 78 times.
United staff will be hoping no more injuries creep their way into the squad, with Maguire likely to bee an imperative part of their plans for the upcoming Premier League season.
After a strong season at Old Trafford, Maguire was unlucky not to link up with England for the European Championship
Victor Lindelof
Victor Lindelof plays mainly as a centre back, but can also play in midfield or as a right back. He made a total of 19 appearances in 1332 minutes last season for United.
The Sweden star kept four clean sheets and conceded 16 goals, with the average minute per goal conceded being 83.3.
He made 22 progressive passes out of his total of 876, and had an accuracy of 89.5 per cent with a carry progress of 901m.
The numbers don’t match up to Yoro’s, but the situation is not to dissimilar to that of Varane, with appearances the tale of the tape.
His pass accuracy is not too different to Yoro’s, and his defensive record is also close to the 18-year-old’s. Lindelof had a tackle success of 66.7 per cent, making 15 tackles last season, with 12 interceptions and winning possession 75 times.
His aerial success, however, stood at 39.5 per cent – the lowest of the defenders in the squad, and he only won 17 of his 43 aerial duels. He also made 38 clearances and nine blocks.
| Leny Yoro | Raphael Varane | Lisandro Martinez | Jonny Evans | Harry Maguire | Victor Lindelof | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TOTAL | PER 90 | TOTAL | PER 90 | TOTAL | PER 90 | TOTAL | PER 90 | TOTAL | PER 90 | TOTAL | PER 90 | |
| Goals conceded | 31 | 1.04 | 23 | 1.51 | 12 | 1.67 | 24 | 1.55 | 29 | 1.58 | 16 | 1.08 |
| Mins/Goals conceded | 86.2 | – | 59.6 | – | 54 | – | 58.2 | – | 56.9 | – | 83.3 | – |
| Progressive passes | 42 | 1.4 | 24 | 1.6 | 15 | 2.1 | 28 | 1.8 | 67 | 3.7 | 22 | 1.5 |
| Total carry progress (m) | 2167.7 | 73 | 1626.9 | 106.8 | 748.3 | 103.9 | 827.8 | 53.4 | 2135.8 | 116.5 | 901 | 60.9 |
| Tackles | 36 | 1.2 | 18 | 1.2 | 12 | 1.7 | 22 | 1.4 | 24 | 1.3 | 15 | 1 |
| Tackles success | 69.40% | – | 61.10% | – | 66.70% | – | 63.60% | – | 70.80% | – | 66.70% | – |
| Interceptions | 36 | 1.2 | 15 | 1 | 5 | 0.7 | 23 | 1.5 | 25 | 1.4 | 12 | 0.8 |
| Possessions won | 124 | 4.2 | 67 | 4.4 | 33 | 4.6 | 70 | 4.5 | 78 | 4.3 | 75 | 5.1 |
| Aerial duels | 71 | 2.4 | 26 | 1.7 | 9 | 1.3 | 54 | 3.5 | 88 | 4.8 | 43 | 2.9 |
| Aerial duels won | 46 | 1.5 | 21 | 1.4 | 4 | 0.6 | 36 | 2.3 | 69 | 3.8 | 17 | 1.1 |
| Aerial success | 64.80% | – | 80.80% | – | 44.40% | – | 66.70% | – | 78.40% | – | 39.50% | – |
| Clearances | 97 | 3.3 | 86 | 5.6 | 23 | 3.2 | 74 | 4.8 | 83 | 4.5 | 38 | 2.6 |
| Blocks | 14 | 0.5 | 18 | 1.2 | 7 | 1 | 17 | 1.1 | 24 | 1.3 | 9 | 0.6 |
| Dribbled past opponents | 14 | 0.47 | 4 | 0.26 | 7 | 0.97 | 9 | 0.58 | 10 | 0.55 | 8 | 0.54 |
| Duels won | 104 | 3.5 | 43 | 2.8 | 21 | 2.9 | 75 | 4.8 | 103 | 5.6 | 35 | 2.4 |
| Duel success | 62.70% | – | 68.30% | – | 48.80% | – | 60.50% | – | 66% | – | 41.20% | – |
| *Data provided by Opta | ||||||||||||
Victor Lindelof wasn’t capable of featuring much for United during the 2023-24 season
The 30-year-old was dribbled past by the opposition eight times – 0.54 times a game compared to Yoro’s 0.47
His duel success stood at 41.2 per cent after he won 15 of his duels, making an overall varied record for Lindelof, and nothing in comparison to the statistics new signing Yoro will bring from Ligue 1.
Overall, if the numbers are anything to go by, the 18-year-old will star for United, with the others having to impress if they want to be regulars in the Red Devils set up.
Time will tell if the investment pays off for Ten Hag and Co, but with impressive numbers and scope to improve, it’s little surprise as to why fans are so excited for the move.
