Man Utd defender Leny Yoro has been impressive in pre-season and looks set to enjoy a strong 2025/2026 campaign.
Steven is a senior writer and covers Manchester United for the Manchester Evening News. You can follow Steven on Twitter at @StevenRailston.
Real Madrid usually get what they want in the transfer market.(Image: 2025 Real Madrid)
Manchester United defender Leny Yoro has been one of the biggest ‘winners’ of pre-season this summer.
Yoro has impressed in each of his appearances in Stockholm, New Jersey, Chicago and Atlanta, and supporters are excited about what he could achieve with a clean bill of health this season.
The Frenchman’s first 12 months in Manchester were disrupted by injuries – and he still made a strong impression. There were clear signs of Yoro’s potential in the midst of a hugely challenging season for United and this summer’s evidence suggests he is ready to take further steps forward in 2025/2026.
Yoro, 19, is learning on the job and already has the qualities of a top player, which helps to explain why Real Madrid were interested in signing him before his transfer to Old Trafford.
Attracting interest from Real Madrid speaks volumes and they were in the race to sign Yoro. However, United submitted a financial package – €62million (£51.8m), with an additional €8m (£6.6m) in add-ons – that Madrid were not prepared to match, as Yoro was in the final year of his Lille contract.
Some suggested United were foolish for paying a significant fee when Yoro’s deal was approaching its expiry, but sitting on their hands would have opened the door for Real Madrid to sign him on a free transfer this summer.
United considered Yoro worth the investment and he could make the £51.8m outlay look like value in the coming years. Yoro has the skillset to become world-class and world-class players command much higher fees.
One of the most promising aspects of Yoro’s pre-season performances has been his willingness to play out from the back because his passing range is hugely beneficial to build-up play.
It’s something Ruben Amorim wants from Yoro, too. “The coach asked me to do, so I need to do it. I enjoy doing it, being in front, and If I can bring the ball forward then I will do it,” he said after the Everton draw.
Yoro has looked sharp in pre-season.(Image: Daniel Bartel – Premier League/Getty Images.)
When Yoro made his United debut against Rangers at Murrayfield in Scotland in pre-season last summer, he executed a few sublime passes, leading to jokes that he was a future Ballon d’Or winner.
Those types of passes aren’t easy to execute and they were briefly missing from Yoro’s locker when he returned from a metatarsal injury in December, but he gradually grew in confidence.
Yoro now looks completely relaxed as a United player and it’s exciting to see him pick out long passes again – defenders who can play such passes are a manager’s dream to deal with.
Before picking up an ankle injury against West Ham in May, which almost ended Yoro’s hopes of playing in the Europa League final, he was outstanding in the left-sided centre-back role.
Most suspected Yoro would be nailed to start in that position in the back-three at the start of the new season, but Amorim has deployed him on the opposite side this summer.
Yoro played on the right side of the defence against West Ham, Bournemouth and Everton in the States, and his performances on that side were just as good as those previously produced on the left.
With that in mind, Yoro deserves praise for delivering strong displays on both sides of the back-three. Possessing the skill to be versatile is another string to his bow as he develops.
Real Madrid would have loved to sign Yoro, but they weren’t willing to cough up a decent transfer fee for a player in the final year of his contract. And that caution forced them to miss out on a supremely talented young defender.
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