In light of Erik Ten Hag’s ongoing recruitment efforts, Mark Goldbridge has responded to reports that a World Cup-winning defender may be on his way to Old Trafford this summer.

Has Benjamin Pavard left for Old Trafford yet?

Benjamin Pavard, a defender for Bayern Munich, has emerged as a target for Manchester United. According to Sky Germany writer Florian Plettenberg, “Man Utd, at this juncture, the favourite in the poker for Benjamin Pavard! Pavard can actually picture himself signing with MUFC like Ten Hag desires. Positive, on-going negotiations are taking place. Valued at about €30 million (£26 million). Tuchel desires to retain him. Pavard desires to quit Bayern. Would be an enormous loss for the team.

The World Cup-winning defender would “love” to experience life in the Premier League, according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano. However, Nice’s Jean-Clair Todibo and Bayer Leverkusen star Edmond Tapsoba are also being taken into consideration by Ten Hag as defensive reinforcements.

The Daily Mail reports that Pavard has been’sounded out’ at Old Trafford as a potential replacement for Harry Maguire, the former club captain who has agreed to a £30 million transfer to West Ham United after being stripped of the leadership earlier in the window.

According to Transfermarkt, Pavard played 47 times for Bayern Munich in all competitions last season, scoring seven goals and providing just one assist.

The 27-year-old is capable of playing both right-back and central defensive positions, but he stated in an interview from two years ago, as mentioned by the official website of the Bundesliga, that his preferred position is in the middle of the backline. However, since I’m playing on the right, I’m not really thinking about that right now.

As a potential deal to bring the former Stuttgart player to Old Trafford gathers steam, Manchester United pundit Goldbridge has commented on links with Pavard. He believes that bringing him in to replace Maguire in central defence would be a “masterstroke” by Red Devils manager Ten Hag.

On the The United Stand YouTube channel, Goldbridge questioned whether Pavard was superior to Maguire. Yes. Maguire and Pavard are three years apart in age. Yes. Is Maguire less expensive than Pavard? Yes. You may think that Todibo and Tapsoba are superior to Pavard, but when you look at the actual comparison, Maguire, who is 30 and costs £30 million, moves to West Ham, while Pavard, who is only 27 and costs £4 million, can play both right-back and center-back.

Almost in a nutshell, this is how you shop in Europe because everything costs more there, don’t you think? Ten Hag pulled off a business masterstroke with this decision.

Is Mark Goldbridge’s evaluation of Benjamin Pavard accurate?

Goldbridge’s reasoning surrounding the sale of Maguire and the potential arrival of Pavard, which would be funded by West Ham and essentially allow Manchester United to get a younger replacement with money to spare left over, is difficult to contest.

There is no denying Pavard’s talent, and he shined for Bayern Munich last season as they won yet another Bundesliga championship. According to WhoScored, Pavard won 2.1 aerials per game in the German top division and had an average match rating of 7.17/10.

When it was reported last month that seasoned right-back Kyle Walker would be moving to Bayern Munich, according to The Guardian, Manchester City was also eager to sign Pavard, demonstrating that the France international had admirers outside of Old Trafford.

If they can complete a deal for Pavard, the Red Devils may be making one of the best moves of the summer window. According to Sky Sports, the fact that Pavard has less than a year left on his contract with Bayern Munich also works in their favour.