Former Lille defender Leny Yoro has revealed the key role a former Manchester United talent played in convincing him to complete a move to Old Trafford this summer.
Manchester United completed their acquisition of the highly-rated 18-year-old Frenchman in an initial deal worth £52.18m, with a further £6.73m in add-ons.
Leny Yoro had been linked with the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid and Liverpool after breaking into the first team with Lille and impressing at the club.
It was believed that the former Lille centre-back had preferred a move to Real Madrid ahead of signing for United in the summer transfer window.
However, United upped their pursuit of Yoro this summer and managed to land him ahead of Los Blancos, with the defender inking a five-year deal with the Red Devils.
Yoro talks former Man Utd talent
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag wasted no time in playing Leny Yoro in the club’s pre-season tour after the Frenchman’s transfer from Lille.
Yoro started alongside Jonny Evans and played the first half in the 2-0 friendly win over Scottish side Ranges on Saturday at the Murrayfield Stadium.
The United summer signing impressed during his time with Lille, having made 60 appearances for the French side since his debut at only the age of 16.
During his time at the Ligue 1 club, Yoro played alongside Angel Gomes and the former United talent told him that the Red Devils are the “biggest club in the world.”
Speaking to Manchester United’s official website, Yoro said: “We spoke a lot about United. [Gomes] just told me this is the biggest club in the world.
“You know, the fans, even the way to play, the training camp, everything is really big, is really incredible.
“Every day I spoke with him about this and it helped me a lot to come here. He’s really happy for me.
“He sent me a message directly [after the transfer was completed].”
Yoro on Man Utd legend’s influence
United legend Rio Ferdinand has waxed lyrical about Yoro before and played his part in the Frenchman completing a sensational transfer to Old Trafford.
Yoro revealed that he had personally spoken with Rio Ferdinand and the former United defender talked up the rich history and prestige of the club.
“It was like two weeks ago [when I first spoke to Rio]. He called me,” he said.
“First of all, I was really impressed to speak with him and, yeah, we spoke like 10 minutes about Man United, so he helped me a lot to make my choice. It was really an honour to speak with him.
“He spoke to me about the club, and that this is a historic club with a big story, and if I go there, I need to fight for the club, to be ready, because this is the biggest club in the world. For me, it was really good to speak about this.”