Who is Manchester United's next right back: Nathaniel Clyne or Dani Alves?

With Rafael out of the team and Antonio Valencia playing out of position, Manchester United have a couple of options for their next right back.

Who is Manchester United's Next Right Back: Nathaniel Clyne or Dani Alves?

Today we preview the first of a weekly series comparing Manchester United transfer targets at each position, and we start at right back. Manchester United are in dire need of a new right back. Since the retirement of Gary Neville in 2011, the Red Devils have not had a consistent starter there, and it is time they find their long-term solution for this position over the summer. 

Currently, United have Rafael and Antonio Valencia at their disposal but neither are the solution for the foreseeable future. Rafael has his moments where he shines but is oft-injured and is a reckless defender. Antonio Valencia is a right winger by trade but is playing right back due to Rafael's injury, and Louis van Gaal's reluctance to play his central defenders, Phil Jones and Chris Smalling, out of position. Jones and Smalling have had their share of time at right back under Sir Alex Ferguson, but they are not the best option there due to their lack of pace and sometimes lackadaisical defending. 

Dani Alves and Nathaniel Clyne are the two players that Manchester United are highly interested in, but which one is a better fit for the team? This writer is going to breakdown each of the players' games and see how they fit amongst the United team. 

Dani Alves:

The right back from FC Barcelona is set to see his contract out and leave this summer on a free transfer. His best days are behind him as an attacking right back, but he still is better than what United have to offer. Barcelona signed him from Sevilla back in 2008 and has been a vital member of the team since. Should Manchester United qualify for the Champions League next season, he has loads of experience in Europe playing in the Champions League every season with Barcelona (two-time winner) and won two UEFA Cups with Sevilla. He was also named in the FIFA FIFPro World XI four times 

As we mentioned earlier, Dani Alves' best quality is his attacking prowess. During his best seasons, Alves would produce over ten assists as well as a high completion percentage of his passes. He is also better in the air than Clyne winning a much higher percentage of aerial duels. For all of his attacking ability, his defending can be somewhat of a liability. When teams are on the counterattack, Alves has to cover much more ground to get back and defend since he is well up the field. This causes more late challenges, fouls, bookings, and errors on his part. 

In terms of attacking, he'll offer more than Antonio Valencia. His crossing is better than Valencia's in terms of accuracy but is less willing to take a man on. This is likely due to Valencia being a right winger whose job is to take the defender on and get the cross in. While Alves may complete less take-ons, he is more inclined to find a key pass which could lead to a goal which is something Valencia does not do often. Valencia has improved his defending throughout this season, but the edge will still go to the Brazilian in this department. 

This season he has committed more fouls, defensive errors, and errors leading to goals than Clyne. He also has more yellow cards this season due to the amount of challenges he goes into. Despite these downsides, he offers a much better attacking presence than Clyne and Valencia. At 31, he isn't the youngest option, but he would be a clear upgrade over what United have now.

Nathaniel Clyne: 

Should Manchester United scoop him up over the summer, he would be the second full back (Luke Shaw) in as many years that they have bought from Southampton. Clyne does not have the glittering resume that Alves has, but seven years Alves' junior, he'll have much more to offer in the long-term future. 

We wouldn't say that Clyne is the polar opposite of Alves, but he is going to attack when he needs to and is a better defender than Alves. Clyne has been an integral part of the Saints' defense which has given up a league-low 24 goals this season. He's an intelligent young man in terms of picking and choosing his tackles and ability to read the game. He has less than double the fouls the Brazilian has committed and has 57 interceptions on the season.

Clyne is nowhere near the attacking level of Dani Alves, but the Englishman has his moments of magic. Although he hasn't assisted on any goals this season, he has found the back of the net twice and did have four assists last season. The department he could perform better in is his passing. His completion percentage is below 80%, much lower than Alves and Valencia. 

Clyne would be the ideal fit at the right back position for Manchester United. He is a solid defender who does not get himself into sticky situations often. Also, he is not an attacking-minded full back, he'll attack when it's necessary allowing him to cover his ground much easier than Alves or Valencia. He doesn't pass as well as the other two, which could lead to more defensive errors especially on a bigger stage, but he should be able to work on that. 

Ideally, Manchester United would like to replace both Rafael and Valencia so getting both of them would be phenomenal coup for them. United are favorites to secure Dani Alves' signature as a free agent, and the possibility of throwing Javier Hernandez in a swap deal for Clyne is looking more and more likely. Clyne would be better for the long-term future, but Alves would be great addition to show him the ropes on playing for a club the size of Manchester United. 

Next week: Strikers (Ings, ​Lacazette, Dybala, and Lewandowski