Manchester United Play £52m Bid For £250,000-A-Week Duo

Arturo Vidal and Angelo Ogbona are reportedly under Manchester United’s radar, in fact Express.co.uk have claimed that should United tender a £52m bid, the pair could as well be on their way to Manchester. With all the rumors that linked Vidal in particular to United, only few could say they knew the deal will never materialize, because at some point Vidal was seen signing autographs on Manchester United jerseys and even most bookies suspended betting on his deal.

Many opined that the deal fell through because of Van Gaal’s concerns over his knees and also that the Dutch man favored fellow country man Kevin Strootman over Vidal, but with the latest reports, it appears Van Gaal is having a change of mind and is attempting a double raid of Juventus to hire the services of Vidal and Ogbonna. The Ogbonna news is still a shock to many as United were never on his case through out the last transfer window.

While United may face no stiff competition in signing Arturo, they may have to rival their North London rivals as Arsenal are also said to be lining up a bid for Ogbonna who is said to cost about £12m. All through the summer window, Arturo declined to comment on any transfer speculations and this further fueled rumors about a possible move to Old Trafford.

However real the rumors may seem, Van Gaal won’t just splash money around unjustifiably. He has already hired Herrera and Blind both of whom are doing reasonably well, and Fletcher and Carrick who can’t afford to fall any lower on the pecking order. Given Van Gaal’s admiration for Strootman, hiring Vidal will further complicate the already saturated mid-field, and even if United has surplus cash lying around, they will rather focus on the defense which is exactly where they need reinforcements.

So here is where Ogbonna comes in. The 26 years old had moved to Juventus from Torino in 2013 on the promise of first team action which has obviously not been regular. Louis Van Gaal also believes that the powerful center back has all it takes to succeed in the Premier League and has resolved to make a move on him in January. For a fee that cheap, Manchester United can surely go all the way to bully Arsenal for his services.