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Manchester United signed the most touted defender on the summer 2024 transfer market, paying a premium price of 52 million pounds for the 18-year-old center back in order to beat the mighty Real Madrid to the punch.

Yoro is capable of starting immediately for Man United, as he was one of the best center backs in Ligue 1 last season. Man United are still after other center back options, but Yoro would have been a legitimate option next to nailed-on starter Lisandro Martinez.

Now, there will be more urgency from Manchester United in securing another center back signing to make it a trio at Old Trafford, because Yoro’s preseason injury is a nasty one.

As the Manchester Evening News’s Samuel Luckhurst reports, Manchester United are worried that Leny Yoro could miss two months with a fractured metatarsal in his left foot after suffering an injury in the preseason friendly against bitter Premier League rivals Arsenal.

While Yoro will be back for most of the season, Manchester United won’t want to start the campaign and lose valuable points because they are short-handed at center back, and they also want to be able to sell Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof.

So here are four top center backs the Red Devils can still sign this summer that will both help the team in the short term with Yoro injured and in the long term as possible starting options.

Matthijs de Ligt, Bayern Munich

Manchester United have probably been spending the most amount of time negotiating for Matthijs de Ligt, and they have already signed his Bayern Munich teammate Noussair Mazraoui to compete with Diogo Dalot at right back as the replacement for West Ham-bound Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

De Ligt would be reunited with Erik ten Hag, as he was the captain who led that fairytale Ajax side to the Champions League semifinals where they lost to another fairytale team in a Harry Kane-less Tottenham.

Still only 24 years old, it’s easy to forget that De Ligt has a good eight years left of high-level football. He may never live up to the billing of the 85 million euros Juventus spent on him or the subsequent 70 million euro fee that Bayern Munich paid, but that’s why De Ligt’s fee is only quoted at 50 million euros by Bayern.

De Ligt is the safest signing Manchester United could make at center back to get a reliable, proven, and athletic starter with leadership qualities. He is a great complement to Lisandro Martinez in skill-set, and, yes, it helps that both men know how to work with ten Hag.

Jarrad Branthwaite, Everton

Jarrad Branthwaite is an excellent 22-year-old center back who was probably the second-most touted young player on the market alongside Leny Yoro before the latter made his move from Lille to Manchester United.

One of the best center backs in the Premier League last season despite playing for a woeful Everton side, Branthwaite is solid beyond his years and qualifies as a dream signing from this list for Manchester United.

But Everton know how valuable he is and are under no pressure to sell, especially after they already made their money by sending Amadou Onana off to Aston Villa.

Therefore, a fee of 70 million pounds or more is simply unpalatable for Manchester United and an irresponsible transfer to make after they already invested so heavily in Yoro; they still have serious needs in the midfield.

Antonio Silva, Benfica

Antonio Silva is very underrated and, like Yoro, has been on the Real Madrid transfer radar. But since Real Madrid aren’t even trying to sign a center back, Manchester United don’t have to worry about any sort of a bidding war – not that they did with Yoro either.

Set to cost just 42 million pounds due to a discount from his release clause, it seems like Silva could be a great value signing and is a top player Benfica are ready to sell.

The 20-year-old had a fantastic 2023/24 season for Benfica, averaging nearly 3 combined tackles and interceptions per game with just 0.3 dribbles completed per match allowed and a pass completion percentage exceeding 93 percent.

Not only would Silva be a younger and cheaper alternative to Branthwaite, but there’s a case to be made that he could be an even better player than the Everton star.

Goncalo Inacio, Sporting CP

Elsewhere in the Portuguese top flight, Goncalo Inacio remains a talent that every top team in the Premier League who is need of a center back should be watching closely.

After being one of the biggest names on the transfer radar in 2023, interest in Inacio has cooled, but with a 60 million euro release clause, that’s a good thing for Manchester United and rivals Liverpool.

Man United may have questions about Inacio’s readiness to start, but he seems as ready as any young center back for action. The Portuguese league deserves more respect, because stop transfers from the country like Luis Diaz, Ruben Dias, and Bruno Fernandes have had zero issues making the immediate transition to the Premier League.