Robin Le Normand: Things to know about the late-blooming Frenchman
By Ross Jackson
After a couple of seasons of mid-table mediocrity, Real Sociedad are emerging as one of Spain's top sides, capable of mixing it with La Liga's best.
One of the reasons for their development has been the form of Robin Le Normand. The French centre-back has cemented his place in the Sociedad starting XI and is beginning to catch the eye of some of Europe's big hitters.
Manchester United are rumoured to be keeping tabs on the 24-year-old, so with a move to the Premier League potentially on the cards, here's everything you need to know about the talented defender.
1. Late bloomer
By the age of 24, some players already have five or six years of top-flight experience under their belts; Le Normand is a relative rookie.
Having started out with French side Brest, the defender was plying his trade in the lower leagues until he was snapped up by Sociedad in 2016, and even then he wasn't named in the senior side.
Le Normand spent the best part of two season with the B team before finally being afforded his La Liga debut in November 2018, meaning he was 22 by the time he finally made his top-flight debut.
2. He signed a new four-year deal last summer
Le Normand has attracted plenty of interest from across Europe, with Manchester United supposedly keeping tabs on the defender.
However, Sociedad are in certainly in the driving seat if any negotiations do take place.
They tied the young defender down to a four-year deal only last summer, meaning the Basque side can basically demand what they want for the 24-year-old - if they don't want to sell him then there's not a lot his potential suitors can do.
3. He has a €75m (£66.8m) release clause in his contract
Well, we say there's not a lot they can do...apart from pay the release clause he's got in his contract, of course.
A cool €75m (£66.8m) and Sociedad are powerless to stop Le Normand from heading for the Anoeta Stadium exit door, though that seems an incredibly steep figure to pay for a player who has just 43 La Liga appearances to his name.
4. Real Sociedad are very reluctant to sell
Should any side courting the centre-back opt against paying the release clause (which let's be honest, is entirely plausible regardless of how talented he looks) Sociedad are unlikely to accept an offer for Le Normand.
As discussed, the centre-back is tied down for another three-and-a-half years and the club are reluctant to part with a player who has helped lay the foundations of a side challenging for a top-six place at the very least.
5. He's yet to receive international recognition
We've already establish that Le Normand has had to work his way through the ranks to get to where he is today, and that seems to have impacted his chances of representing the France national team.
Despite emerging as a real top talent in La Liga over the past few seasons, the 24-year-old is yet to earn a call-up to the French senior side (though in truth that probably shouldn't come as too much of a surprise given Aymeric Laporte is still awaiting his maiden cap) but even more weirdly, he failed to receive a single cap for any of the French youth teams.
6. Style of play
If Manchester United are looking for a ball-playing centre-back who can start attacks, then Le Normand probably isn't the man for them.
That's not to say he's a clown with the ball at his feet, and he's proven himself to be comfortable taking the ball and distributing into midfield, but he probably comes under the bracket 'no-nonsense centre-back' rather than 'silky, modern-day defender'.
The 24-year-old is strong in the air and doesn't back out of a challenge, and he could turn out to be a great partner for Harry Maguire if United do opt to try to sign him.