Man Utd Transfer News: Ezequiel Garay Deal "Agreed In Principal"

by Joseph Dempsey

Mirror. Reports in Portugal claim the 50-year old Scotsman is on the verge of signing the £17 million-rated Argentine international and that the 26-year old will follow fellow South American defender Guillermo Varela, 20, to Old Trafford. The Premier League champions signed the Uruguayan youngster from Peñarol earlier this week but Moyes is looking for further defensive reinforcements. Although Rio Ferdinand has just recently signed a one-year extension at the club, he will turn 35 later this year and Garay is considered a long-term replacement. There are also concerns surrounding the fitness of club captain Nemanja Vidic, who missed the entirety of the second half of the 2011/12 season after suffering knee ligament damage. Chris Smalling and Phil Jones were also plagued by injuries last season and so Moyes, who does not officially take over at the club until July 1, is looking for more defensive options ahead of his side's defence of the Premier League title. Garay has been a key figure in the Benfica team and helped guide his side to the final of last season's Europa League, where his side lost out to Chelsea.

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Contributor

Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.