With the now yearly Summer circus right around the corner, every day there seems to be a newspaper linking us with one player or another.
So, I thought I would join in and give my thoughts on our possible Summer activity in the transfer market.
This one’s a keeper.
With Edwin Van Der Sar retiring and Tomasz Kuszczak moving on to pastures new it looks like we will be short on goal keeping options. It looks as though our two senior keepers next year will be David de Gea and Anders Lindegaard. This means we are going from two goal keepers with almost 400 Premier League appearances between them, to two keepers with none. I’m sure most will agree that this is a risk.
My idea would be to sign a keeper with bags of Premier League experience who would not mind being second choice and helping De Gea develop. I believe Brad Friedel would be a great choice. He is on a free, still a top quality keeper who could play his part in the Cups and pass all his experience on to De Gea. This would allow us to loan Lindegaard out to gain Premiership experience.
Would you Adam and Eve it?
With Owen Hargreaves and Paul Scholes ending their respective United careers, I think its obvious that we need another centre midfielder. The number one choice would be Wesley Sneijder, but it looks like he wants to stay in Milan.
My idea would be to sign Charlie Adam. He is a world class passer of the ball, takes a mean free kick and a wicked corner. Free kicks are something we have really struggled with since Ronaldo left and we have not had a quality (and consistent) corner taker for years. He would not cost too much and would jump at the chance of joining us.
Luka Modric would also be a great choice. However, in recent weeks he has expressed his desire to stay at Tottenham and it would seem that Tottenham want to keep him. This means that any deal may be difficult and very expensive.
On a Wing and a Prayer.
It would seem that we are OK for wingers. We have Nani, Valencia, Park, Giggs and the choice of the twins to step in if needed. However, I think we need a left winger in the style of Ronaldo. The type of player who will get the ball and just run at people and who is a little bit greedy. I think we would have won a few more away games against the lesser teams if we had a player like this.
My choice would be for us to sign Ashley Young. With only a year left on his contract, it would seem that Villa are willing to sell without it costing us the earth. He can also put a quality ball in to the box from the wing and from set pieces. With him and Charlie Adam, I think we would be well covered for set pieces next season.
Other than the three players mentioned, I think we are well covered in most positions. I think we should offer Michael Owen a new pay as you play deal, as I think he still has a lot to offer the club, both on and off the field. I would also like to see Wes Brown given a new deal. If he is happy not being first choice, I think he would be handy to have around.
I also think we could see a few players leaving on loan next season. I think another loan to a Premiership club would do the world of good for Danny Wellbeck and a full season for Kiko Macheda would really help his development. I also think a loan to a steady Championship team or struggling Premier league would really help Bebe next year. This will also apply to Obertan, who I think needs a full season under his belt to have any chance at United.
Now, time to deal with Manchester United’s marmite man, Darron Gibson. There is no doubt that he is a good player, but there are still question marks as to whether he is good enough for Manchester United. As with others, I think if he has a full season playing, we will start to have a better idea as his true level. I think it is clear that he will not get many games here next season so perhaps a loan out is what he needs. I think there will be a few Premier League clubs willing to give him a chance.
With these comings and goings, I think we would have a better squad than we do now. Except for the goal keeping situation we will have improved on most areas of the pitch and ready to win number 20 next season.
Read more of Stockport Red’s articles at Red Flag Flying High
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