With the euphoria surrounding the signings of Matteo Darmian, Morgan Schneiderlin and Bastian Schweinsteiger having died down a bit amidst the Manchester United fanbase of late, their eyes are on who else Louis van Gaal will be bringing into Old Trafford this summer.
United started their summer business slowly but with it having picked up of late, Red Devils fans are more confident that their Dutch boss can find everything he needs before the closure of the window in September.
Most of all, Manchester United need another centre back and a top quality one at that with Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Jonny Evans anything but the finished article right now but in truth, the latter player is likely to be sold on once United get their man.
In addition to this, United also look light up top with only Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez and James Wilson representing the striking options and with van Gaal having claimed that Memphis Depay can do a job there recently, perhaps United will try and wing it with that foursome for the time being.
Add into the mix that Victor Valdes has endured a major falling out with van Gaal and United are also looking for another goalkeeper at the moment so with all of this in mind, we’ve devised a list of five United targets who could be following Schweinsteiger to Old Trafford this summer.
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Click on the image below to reveal the 5 players to follow Bastian Schweinsteiger to Manchester United this summer.
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Sergio Romero
United’s goalkeeping dilemma has changed direction far more times than we care to remember this summer.
Right now, it looks as if David De Gea will be staying at Old Trafford for one more season after Real Madrid swooped to sign Kiko Casilla from Espanyol last week while handing the number one jersey to last season’s substitute Keylor Navas.
So at present United boast David De Gea, Anders Lindegaard and Victor Valdes on their books but it’s the latter stopper who looks like his United career is over.
Four days ago, BBC Sport reported Louis van Gaal’s claims that Valdes will be sold after refusing to play in the reserves and with the player going against the Dutchman’s so-called philosophy, he looks a goner.
So in the days since, we’ve seen United intensely linked with a move for current free agent Sergio Romero who partd company with Sampdoria at the end of last season.
Still the Argentine number one, Romero would represent a decent replacement for Valdes and The Guardian report that a deal is inching its way to completion,.
Pedro
While a large majority of Manchester United fans would like to see Angel Di Maria have another crack at the Premier League this term after a poor season last time out, it increasingly looks as if the Argentine will be trading Manchester for Paris.
With Paris Saint-Germain being long-term admirers of Di Maria, it seems as if Laurent Blanc’s side have made him their number one transfer priority this time around and with no marquee name yet to rock up at the Parc Des Princes so far this summer, we reckon Di Maria will be in the coming weeks.
The latest from The Mirror is that PSG are convinced Di Maria is all but theirs and if a deal is concluded, United will use this cash to then swoop for Barcelona’s Pedro who is far from content at the Camp Nou.
Now a regular substitute behind Neymar, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi, not to mention having witnessed Arda Turan sign for January 2016 recently, Pedro is expected to exit and a club like Manchester United with Champions League football seems the ideal destination for him to move to.
Pedro would be a marquee like-for-like signing for Di Maria and if he starts producing the goods right away, United fans will forget all about the Argentine.
Nicolas Otamendi
Out of all of the positions on the field, it seems as if Manchester United are struggling the most to land new defensive reinforcements.
Following the departures of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic, the Red Devils have really struggled to effectively replace the legendary pair and the latest man on their radar is Valencia’s Nicolas Otamendi after Sergio Ramos flirted with a switch for a while this summer.
Otamendi is proving extremely difficult to attain this summer however with the Argentine international reportedly now being forced to report for pre-season duty amidst news that he was intent on striking to force through a transfer.
It’s clear Otamendi’s head has been turned by United’s interest and this deal remains in the balance but what we do know is that the Red Devils want him as one of their next arrivals.
Robert Lewandowski
It looks like a pipedream at present and it’ll probably stay that way but Manchester United are still being linked with the signature of Bayern Munich forward Robert Lewandowski this summer.
With the Red Devils also interested in the Pole’s Bayern team-mate Thomas Muller, the interesting sub-plot here is that Louis van Gaal has recently claimed he could make a “surprise” signing in the remainder of the transfer window.
To lure the likes of Lewandowski or Muller away from the Allianz Arena would represent a surprise and a half but after all, who thought United would get their hands on Bastian Schweinsteiger after Franz Beckenbauer and co warned him off a switch?
The thing with United right now is that they’re making a statement in the transfer market and while Bayern absolutely don’t need to fear United given their stature in the world game, perhaps the Bavarian giants will be receiving another call from Manchester this summer.
Jasper Cillessen
If you thought the aforementioned Sergio Romero was the answer to Manchester United’s goalkeeping dilemma, you could yet be proved wrong.
The other name in the frame is Ajax’s Netherlands international stopper Jasper Cillessen who was recently interviewed by Sky Sports regarding the Red Devils’ interest in him.
Managed by van Gaal at the World Cup of course, Cillessen claimed he’s received no news from his agent regarding a transfer and is happy at the Amsterdam ArenA but when pushed hard by the reporter, did express a perceived interest in a reunion with the United boss with a glint in his eye.
Cillessen would represent a great addition this summer and could take over from David De Gea at the end of this season being just 26-years-old and after all, Frank de Boer has admitted he’s resigned to losing his number one at some point.
In addition to this, the Daily Mail have claimed that Ajax will reportedly ask Arsenal about the availability of Wojciech Szczesny amid the speculation that Cillessen could depart and after all, the Amsterdam giants have already lured Yaya Sanogo away from Emirates Stadium on loan so far this summer.
