What Next For Manchester United?

With the 'Rooneygate' saga now behind us, it seems the burning question is where do Manchester United go from here? With the future of Rooney secure (for now at least) United have the chance to silence the doubters who claim that there is no money to spend at Old Trafford. With the £80 million the club received from Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo still (apparently) lying unspent surely United must now strengthen there squad. Here we are going to have a look through the possible transfer targets of the Old Trafford club.

Wesley Sneijder (above) - Linked with Manchester United over the summer after a sterling world cup where he finished joint top scorer. Would seem to be able to adapt to the ELP if the form of his fellow Dutch international Rafael Van Der Vaart is anything to go by, it begs the question as to why there wasn't more interest in Van Der Vaart before he signed for spurs. Can play either central midfield or as the 'link' between midfield and attack, would seem to fit the perfectly for what United need at the moment with their midfield struggling to impose themselves on games. Scholes and Giggs can not be expected to produce performance after performance anymore and with Hargreaves still struggling to gain fitness it leaves Anderson and Carrick - enough said. Fergie has bought on reputation before and been bitten (Veron, Kleberson), therefore its unlikely he will splash the cash, preferring in my view to buy potential and develop it, like he has done so successfully over the past 24 years.

Arjen Robben - Teammate of Sneijder and fellow World Cup runner up, talk seems to have died down linking Robben with a move back to the EPL since it was first mooted early in 2010. Robben's sparkling form for FC Bayern, lifting them to the final of the Champions League almost single handily last season, raised his credibility once again after a indifferent spell at Real Madrid. Robben's reputation as being a difficult personality to control may count him out of a move to Old Trafford.

Kaka - I am sure i am not the only one who would love to see Ricardo Kaka strutting his stuff on Match of the Day on saturday evening, but i cant see this move ever happening. In my mind if Kaka wanted to move to England he would have signed the golden and oil smelling cheque Manchester City offered him last year. With Jose Mourinho now in charge at Madrid it seems unlikely any player in their right mind would leave the club unless told too. 

Steven Defour (above) - The Standard Liege midfielder has been out of action for more than a year after breaking his foot, but now coming back to fitness United seem ready to pounce. A Belgian international renowned for his physical pedigree is exactly the type of player United require and desire. In my eyes highly likely to make the move to Old Trafford sooner rather than later, providing he proves his fitness.

Alexis Sanchez (above) - A highly rated front man who prefers to operate from wide positions, Sanchez has been in europe for more than 4 years and is only 21 years of age. After a good world cup showing for Chile it seems the stage is set for Sanchez to make a move from Udinese to one of Europe's elite clubs. His size may count against him moving to England, with spain a preferred destination for many of the world's smaller, more skilful players. Having said that he is exactly the kind of player Fergie loves, quick, an eye for a goal and mature beyond his years, dont be surprised to see Sanchez end up at Old Trafford.

Ibrahim Afellay -The highly regarded 24-year-old playmaker is another player off the conveyer belt of production at PSV. Blessed with two strong feet and an eye for a goal this is another who seems to be destined to play in the EPL at some point, whether or not United are willing to pay a large fee for him remains to be seen, must impress in Europe over the coming months to gain a move away from Holland.


In conclusion, dont expect Manchester United to splash the cash in January or the summer of 2011, Sir Alex will do what he has always done in my mind, have faith in the development of young players (Hernandez) ready to create his final team to take on the ELP and Europe. The next question is really how long does Sir Alex have left in him... 


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