Manchester United legend Gary Neville has given David Moyes a shopping list of stars to help United re-find their form after a nightmare start to his career as manager at Old Trafford.
United are currently dwindling in 7th place, struggling to confirm a 4th place finish and secure Champions League football.
A poor transfer window last summer and a lack of activity this summer has left Moyes with a squad in desperate need of fresh faces and speaking on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, Gary Neville has pointed the United manager in the right direction when it comes to signings.
The former United captain suggest that Moys focus on a number of players:
“If you took Paul Pogba, Marco Reus, Luke Shaw and Arturo Vidal – they would fit into Manchester United’s philosophy.
“Lucas Moura would and Ilkay Gundogan and Julian Draxler would. They are young players who have still not reached their full potential and have the potential to go on to be world-class players.
“They are good players at the moment and that fits the Manchester United mould of how they have historically signed, more often than not.”
But interestingly, the United right back suggested Moyes avoid Mata especially at £37m:
“That’s a lot of money, 37 million quid, but they need a signing.
“Does he fit with what I would call the typical philosophy of Manchester United? I would say no.
“The first question, I think, is where are you going to play? Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie are up top if they are fit so where are you going to play him? Are you going to play him off the left or off the right?
“We’ve seen Kagawa play off the left, we saw Kleberson play at times off the left, we’ve seen Veron at Manchester United move to the left because you can’t play central midfield.
“Maybe they have to change the philosophy and maybe that’s what David Moyes is thinking. Maybe he wants to play narrow wide players and maybe a three in midfield.
“They would have to change to accommodate Juan Mata in the way they normally play. They normally play with wide players. Sometimes they tuck in, but generally they have wide players and the thing for me is where is he going to play?”
Whilst Mata is proven in the Premier League, £37m does seem excessive but with United in their current state and given that Chelsea are a Premier League rival, Moyes should expect to pay over the odds to secure his signature.
Whilst United won’t sign all or perhaps even any of the players Neville mentioned, it has become patently obvious that the team needs an injection of new blood, and Moyes will have to spend the money The Glazers insist is available to attract these stars given that he will face competition from Europe’s elite clubs.
Gary Neville is a great pundit but he is living in the past. United need proven premier league stars who can come straight into the team & lift the players & the crowd. Mata fits that bill he was Chelsea’s best player for the last two seasons, according to some of my Chelsea friends he is still one of the best players at the club, even if Mouriniho doesnt think so. He is an attacking midfielder left or right who can also operate on the left wing. Is Neville saying that United dont play with attacking midfielders or wingers ? He is not a water carrier like Cleverley or defensive midfielder like Carrick he is a creative defence unlocking midfielder with proven pedigree, the type of player we are crying out for. Reus is a winger, Gundogan is a more imaginative version of Cleverley both remind me of the hype that surrounded Kagawa when we bought him from the same club, Dortmund, has he fitted in ? Gary the days of waiting to unearth another Ronaldo are unfortunately a luxury we can not afford.
I agree with everything you say apart from the Kagawa point. There was ‘hype’ surrounding him for a reason, he was their best player in title winning sides for 2 years.. Simple as that. I’m tired of hearing people saying negative things about him and angry that he’s still not been given 1 single run in the team the whole of his time with us. Players need confidence. That is the main ingredient in showing their ability. How do mediocre at best people like Cleverley get such a run of games yet someone like Kagawa who comes on for 15 minutes and makes things happen Cleverley can’t in 94 can’t? United need to modernize their thinking and not have such an obsession with wingers. Ok if you’ve got Ronnie or Giggs or Kanchelskis at their best but we haven’t. Mate would be a great signing especially in a team that doesn’t need to accommodate wing play obsessively as would Kagawa. I’m afraid to say though Moyes does not strike me as an innovative thinker..
i dare say gary neville has a better idea than you or I about how united play football.
you have to listen to him when he questions where mata would fit in without changing the entire style of play. look at kagawa who is essentially a similar player.
firstly kagawa is amazing if you play him in this proper position instead of pulling him on the wing…. reus can play anywhere left wing I would put him whose his direct rival YOUNG really ?? theres talk of a certain 50m striker I would go for falcao and tbh I think because he plays for such a pathetic club it would be so much easier and lastly pogba ??? vidal all day long there no doubt pogba is good but hes an arrogant selfish loser and the way he turned his back for a few more £$£$£$ fuck him
Dats right man
Have got the news moyes said that he wanted to cheer supporter by winning league cup. I said its not for the supporter but for him. He hasn’t win any trophies in his managing career that why he taking the advantage of being in the big team. For me league cup doesn’t interest me we have won it so much time leave it to small team. We are big team for me champion league,league title and maybe fa cup also interest me. Moyes try to win champion league to cheer us up i see becoz league title we are gone and also who know next season we will not playing champion league.
In league semi final it is possible that the match can go in extra time if lucky we won then we will be crash my city in final. It will be a 3 or 4 – 0. Lost. Becoz united today can’t match city.
I agree with g.neville but the plus point is mata is a good player and we need player like him. I know it too much 37 million but wat to do sometime we sacrified for good and mata is very good player.
Despite his best position in behind striker and we got many player there kagawa,januzaj,rooney,fellaini he can played also as wings. And our wings we all united fans know januzaj left side booked by him. And remain valencia. Sometime he lack of creativity in left. Mata can played there. And valencia we can sometime used him a right back if there is injuries or must rest player for big match. He is strong that his advantage.
If mata deal confirme please try to bring central defensive midfielder becoz this is the key position we need to dominate the match with big team like city. Please for god sake buy central defensive midfielder moyes.
What I do know is that we need fresh blood in our faltering squad,be it mata or any good players to resurrect our top four finish hope.a host of stars hav been linked with man utd, but what is more puzzling is how serious are man utd about these players? It will make a lot of sense if deal can be concluded for mata.he’s the caliber of player it think man utd needed to make them competitive again.
Many things to say but just one for the moment – if 37 is too much for Mata, a world class player, how much over the odds was 27.5 for Fellaini, a second rate player if ever I saw one. And why was he signed instead of Ozil (offered to Utd before he went to Arsenal) or indeed Barkley, mamaged by Moyes who, like any football man, must have/should have known what a gem he is? With mistakes like that no wonder Moyes won nothing in 10 years at Everton. Indeed it’s odd that a club built to win should have taken on a man who’s specialised in winning nothing. As Jimmy Greaves said, “it’s a funny old game”.