Manchester Utd Planning Mammoth £60m Raid On £120k-A-Week Duo
Although Manchester United have spent about £150m on transfers alone this summer, it is no longer news that the team still need to be reinforced, but when you assess the current squad, you’d understand that the Red Devils have no business signing new strikers. The Old Trafford outfit boast of at least three world class strikers leading their onslaught, Louis van Gaal could call on any of Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao who is currently on loan from France based PSG. Also there is Juan Mata who can serve as a link between the midfield and the attack and also the versatile duo of Andan Januzaj and James Wilson.
However, as mighty as the squad appear on the attack, they are very frail on the defence and even though they are welcoming Jonny Evans, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, they are still no match for the rock solid defence partnership forged between Rio Ferdinand and Nemaja Vidic that was once the envy of all Europe. While it is true that the club saw 2 new additions to the defence in Marcos Rojo and Luke Shaw, there is still a dire need to sign more defenders and with reports coming in from the Metro, it appears that Manchester United are on the verge of completing a mammoth £60m deal for Everton duo Ross Barkley and Seamus Coleman.
These players were instrumental in the Merseyside club’s quest to achieve a 4th place finish last term and now, their performances have caught the attention of Manchester United’s manager Louis van Gaal. It was just a few months back that Barkley signed a contract extension which is expected to keep him at the club until the summer of 2018. The midfielder’s progress this season was hampered when he suffered an injury to his Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) and although initial assessment ruled him out for 5 months, a subsequent briefing from Everton manager Roberto Martinez indicated that he will just be side-lined for 8 weeks. Barkley dazzled in his first game after recovery when he linked up a pass for Romelu Lukaku’s goal in the Toffees victory over Aston Villa few weeks ago.
On the other hand, Seamus Coleman impressed for the Toffees so much that his performances got him a spot on last season’s English Premier League team of the year list. One of the more conspicuous attribute of the full-back is that he could make daring runs at the opponent’s defenders without neglecting his primary defensive duties. There are clear indications that Louis van Gaal may be looking to sign Coleman and then build him into his desired full-back as the manager had earlier, before the commencement of this season, told Rafael that he could leave if he wanted to. In fact at a time Manchester United were willing to swap the poor performing Marouane Fellaini with some cash of course, for Coleman’s services, and by January, it will be clear what plans the Manchester giants have concerning the Merseyside duo.