Coentrao: "It would be an honor to play for Manchester United"

With the signing of Porto's Danilo fresh in everyone's minds, it's actually the words of another Madrid fullback that should be garnering more attention. Following Portugal's 2-1 victory over Serbia on Sunday, Fabio Coentrao spoke to O Jogo and didn't mince his words when it came to a potential move to Manchester United.

I have already shown an interest in playing there [at Manchester United]. It is one of the best clubs in the world, a club I admire a lot. It would be an honour to play there.

If you recall, it was a last-minute paperwork which kept Coentrao from being shipped out to Manchester United in the summer of 2013 and his tenure with Madrid since then has seen a mixed return. When on form, he's certainly one of the worlds best fullbacks as he's more defensively disciplined than Marcelo and has a good connection with Cristiano Ronaldo. However, niggling injuries and a seeming lack of trust from Carlo Ancelotti has prevented him from winning the starting minutes a player of his caliber should be seeing.

In all likelihood, and despite his further comments that he's contractually obligated to Madrid, Coentrao will be shopped around again this summer given that Madrid has been linked to a number of replacement options such as David Alaba, Jose Gaya, Jetro Willems and Ricardo Rodriguez. It's unfortunate that his time with Madrid played out like this, but maybe a break would be best for both parties.