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The last season is over for good for Manchester United and the club needs to get over it and move on. A major reason for the club’s disastrous campaign was the failure in estimating transfer targets and landing them on time in the summer window. Therefore, the first and foremost thing for the new management under Louis Van Gaal is to be realistic in the transfer window. We all know how transfer chases for Fabregas and Modric ended under Moyes era and how we missed out on potential signings such as Strootman, Cabaye and Coentrao. Van Gaal, a proven statesmen, would evaluate the situation at hand and try to sign players which we can actually land in the summer.Let us all be practical about the situation of the club in the next season! United is not going to play in Europe and that means a reduction of 8-10 matches for the season. The lack of European football will affect our chances to attract the world’s best in the transfer market and players such as Kroos, Reus, Fabregas or Cavani would prefer other destinations if they decide to make a move in this window. Instead, Woodward and his team should look forward to build the team for the Premier League and challenge to retain the lost title from the blue half of Manchester. The management also needs to get rid of the dead wood and make provisions for the incoming loaned out players from the United Academy. Meanwhile, reinforcements in the midfield are a top priority as United already has a world class attacking line up to boast in the front and majority of the focus should be to land players in that area.Let us look at the top realistic targets that Manchester United should focus on and try to get them as soon as possible.DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this article are the author's own and not reflective of the website as a whole.
#1 Luke Shaw
It does not seem to be necessary to reiterate the need for a top class Left Back at United to replace the aging Patrice Evra, who has just signed a one year extension to stay on with the club. Luke Shaws selection to the Premier League team of the year is a testament to his potential to be world class, bearing in mind that the young Saints defender is just 18 years of age and has already established himself as one of the best left backs in the league. The charm of playing regular football under Van Gaal might be enough to entice him from the grasp of other suitors and even at a price of around 27 million he would make a perfect signing for the next 10-12 years at that position. Under the mentorship of Evra, he would learn from one of the best veterans left backs and the transition will benefit United for a long term.
According to reports, a bid is already in place and he should be Uniteds top priority as the young full back wont be distracted by the lack of European football in the upcoming season. His price might go up after the World Cup, so United needs to act quickly and wrap up the deal to have their first player on board to kick of the most important transfer window of their recent history.
#2 Adrien Rabiot
The French midfielder is one of the best young talents in Ligue 1 and has already established himself as a skilled ball player in the middle of the park. He is very highly rated at PSG but is frustrated with the lack of chances due to the likes of Cabaye, Verrati and Matuidi in the first team lineup. He has one year remaining in his contract and might come for a very reasonable price of under 10 million.
The Red Devils have not been able to revive their midfield to match the old times of Keane, Scholes, Beckham etc. and the current batch of youngsters are not up to the mark to play regularly for United. Rabiot, who is 19 years of age, can be the answer to this long standing issue and develop into one of the worlds best under Van Gaal. He might not be as good as Kroos or Fabregas, but surely has the potential to match the greats in the upcoming years. He is tall, strong and has a good passing range with a vision for starting an attack from the midfield. He can be deployed in the defensive midfield and left midfield position which will help him to be a regular starter for United under Van Gaals 4-3-3 system. The Gaffer has been instrumental in the development of Xavi and Iniesta and might as well promote the young Frenchman to first team ranks sooner than expected.
He will not be a impact player in the upcoming season, but will surely be a regular starter in the next few years at United.
#3 Steven Caulker
The imminent departure of the long term partnership of Vidic and Ferdinand has left a gap in the defense for United. Even though they have good replacements in Jones and Smalling, but injuries and inconsistency have led to doubts over the pairs potential to guard the United defense for a long term. The chase to land Garay, Hummels or Mangala can be a lost cause and we need to move to other defensive targets for the upcoming season.
Steven Caulker, a graduate from the Spurs academy, has been a revelation since his move to Cardiff last summer. Now that the club has been relegated to the Championship, Caulker will have lot of potential suitors to let him remain in the top tier of English football. He is already garnering interest from Liverpool but United should not overlook him while trying to fill the gap in the Centre Back spot. He is a very mature player for his age and is considered to be good in the air for set pieces delivery. He played 38 times for Cardiff last season and scored on 5 occasions. He was pivotal at Swansea while on loan and helped the club to finish 11th in the 2011-12 season, but could not furnish a regular starting spot at Spurs. The English defender will come at a price of around 10-12 million, a bargain considering his age and experience in the league.
At 22, he is still very young and has the potential to be a regular starter alongside Jones at United and England for the next 10 years or so.
#4 Sami Khedira
Real Madrids policy to upgrade their team every year forces many talented players to leave the club in search for regular football. Sami Khedira is one such player who has found himself surplus to requirements at the Los Blancos and will be looking to move on after a injury laden season. His German counterpart, Mesut Ozil, has already moved to the English League and would advice his countryman to do the same. He can be a perfect fit at United who are looking for much needed reinforcement in the defensive midfield and will adjust well with the physical nature of the premier league. He is also admired by Chelsea and Arsenal, but might consider joining United as he would be a guaranteed starter ahead of Fellaini.
Same Khedira has always been an integral part of the Germany's national setup and is bound to find a spot on flight to Brazil under Joachim Low.He is in the last year of his contract and Real Madrid would want to cash in on him as they look out to sign Pogba from Juventus. A deal for around 12-15 million will be a bargain and United might need to offer him better wages to ward off interest from Arsenal.
#5 Wesley Sneijder
This signing might raise a few eye brows in the football community as the Dutchman is considered to be past his prime and is currently playing at Galatasaray. His name has been linked with Old Trafford for so many years but no one understands why he was never signed! After all these years at the top and close to achieving everything in football, the Dutch international is still 29! He is what we need to fill in the gap left by Scholes in the creative midfield department. With his long passing range he will be able to switch the attack from the center and help United wingers and forwards with his vision and creativity. He has already worked under Van Gaal and has always shown interest to join Manchester United, for which he was also ready to take a pay cut in the January window.
He might not be the long term solution but would benefit the team with his experience and big game reputation. Sneijder could be the missing key in the midfield and his 10 million price tag wont hurt us much after what we paid for Fellaini in the last window. Van Gaal should be ready to take this calculated risk and get the best out of Sneijder in the twilight years of his career. The opportunity to play in a top league like the EPL should be enough fuel to entice the Dutchman into this deal.
