DENIS IRWIN was in no doubt about the crucial ingredient. “It’s a new defence,” he said, “but Darmian has been key to establishing its solidity because when you have a full-back who can properly defend it helps the whole unit straight away.”
Balance and the big picture — not individuals — is what interests a coach such as Louis van Gaal. “He has to play against Swansea City, against [Jefferson] Montero, he is a very good player so it shall be a big test. But until now he has fulfilled my expectations of him,” Van Gaal said.
Questions hang over Matteo Darmian but ones that are to his credit rather than detriment. When he appeared against England at the World Cup cries of “who?” were soon replaced by “how?” We asked how he could be so assured on this stage, without having played a competitive game for Italy before.
Now we wonder how, in these overheated transfer times, Darmian was on the market for a mere £12.7m basic fee. How did Manchester United pick up Armani for a Primark price?
The story of Darmian is the story of Serie A as it compares to the Premier League. Darmian was 24 when he faced England in Manaus, having only once previously played for Italy, in a friendly against Ireland. He was 25 and at Torino, a historic but faded club, when there was a serious market for his services this summer. In Italy, young players are not projected and promoted as much as elsewhere.
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Darmian had the talent — he made his debut for AC Milan at only 16 — but as a young defender, indeed a centre-back to start with, he was expected to take a long apprenticeship and wait his chance.
Italian clubs can view young players as counters in their transfer games and Milan, who have made so many bad decisions in recent years, were willing to give up half his ownership rights and send him to Palermo. The Sicilian club secured Darmian’s complete rights in 2012 but immediately there was more trading – a new co-ownership accord with Torino (where he was on loan) was struck. It was only when Torino, in turn, bought out Palermo that Darmian could settle and progress.
In the Premier League, £12.7m seems a snip but it is an environment where, thanks to television revenue, money and reality get estranged. In Italy, when Urbano Cairo, Torino’s president, sold Darmian in July he was congratulated for doing yet more good business. With add-ons, Torino will receive €20m (£14.5m), having paid just €1.5m for the player.
Yet in not many, but some transactions, both parties get a good deal and United’s maligned executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward might, for once, be congratulated for sharp timing.
In the Premier League only Liverpool were also prioritising that position, but were more than happy for United to drop out of the running for Nathaniel Clyne.
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“It’s very hard to go and pick a player these days where you can sign him for a decent fee and there aren’t two or three other top clubs fighting with you. To get that quality of footballer — for that money — is excellent,” Irwin said.
“He has slotted in straight away and it was important he, like the other signings, went on United’s summer tour. That’s helped gel the team very quickly. Darmian looks such a major find already.”
Irwin became one of United’s greatest full-backs after joining from Oldham aged 24. “Darmian’s a similar age,” he said, “and it’s a good age to come in. At full-back, you can be in an exposed position and when you’re a young full-back you make mistakes and learn from them. He arrives having already done all that and you can see his experience in how he knits the defensive and attacking sides of his game together.”
Van Gaal also likes the equilibrium in Darmian’s game. Comfortable on the ball, he uses it cannily, a lithe athlete, he gets up the pitch easily to join attacks. But most of all, and with the jagged elbows and grabbing hands and occasionally errant studs of an Italian defender, he defends.
“The profile of a full-back is first he has to defend and secondly that he has to build up and third he has to attack and give an option to his fellow players in front of him,” said Van Gaal, explaining how Darmian and his ‘philosophy’ dovetail. “A player like Mata who is playing [as right attacker] needs that fellow player to give him options.”
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Van Gaal defends expensive signings with the argument that it’s the player who matters, not the fee, and feels Darmian rather illustrates his point. “He was not a big player in Italy, he was a rising star, a late developer and [shows] the market [price] of a player is hard to decide.” Having a right-back who can defend underpinned United’s defence in Gary Neville’s time and in the 2008 Champions League final, when Wes Brown gave arguably the performance of his career. It lets the left-back go forward and helps the centre-backs. And it offers protection, since many sides put their best dribbler on the left wing.
Darmian’s presence is freeing Luke Shaw and settling Chris Smalling. It’s 10 years since United started with clean sheets in their first three league games. “I stayed for 12 years,” said Irwin. “Shaw can be United’s left-back for years to come and Darmian looks such a good athlete — if he wants, there’s no reason he can’t also have a long United career ahead of him.”
•Denis Irwin will captain Manchester United legends versus Liverpool legends at the Friends Arena in Stockholm on Thursday, with kick off at 7.30pm local time. Tickets are available from friendsarena.se. Proceeds go to Manchester United Foundation and Liverpool FC Foundation for their work with young people in their local communities.