After making two statement signings at centre-back last summer, Manchester United fans were left wondering how former manager Erik ten Hag would keep central defenders happy.
United already had Lisandro Martinez, Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans on their books but there was no denying they needed fresh blood at the back following the departures of Raphael Varane and Willy Kambwala.
United beat Real Madrid to the signing of Leny Yoro in July, signing him from Lille for an initial fee of £52.2million, before adding Matthijs de Ligt from Bayern Munich in August for an initial fee of £38.4m.
At the juncture of their arrivals, United operated with a back-four, featuring just two central defenders, and Martinez was a shoo-in at left-sided centre-back as a left footer. It meant Yoro, De Ligt and Maguire were poised to fight it out for other berth.
Yoro missed the start of the season with a fractured metatarsal and by the time he returned, United had transitioned to a 3-4-2-1 system under new head coach Ruben Amorim. That opened up an extra spot for a centre-back in the starting XI.
Yoro was considered as one of the most sought after centre-backs in European football, with the 19-year-old attracting plenty of attention after some stellar performances in France. Many United supporters felt Amorim's appointment would see him become his first-choice right-sided centre-back.
Amid United's indifferent form and the various injury issues they have encountered since Amorim's appointment, consistency in team selections has been lacking. However, the loss of Martinez to an ACL injury at the start of last month opened the door for Yoro to finally attempt to try and nail down a place in the head coach's first-choice starting
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