Even before Louis Van Gaal officially leaves his post as Netherlands head coach, his new Manchester United side have been busy in the summer transfer market.
Luke Shaw and Ander Herrera will line up at Old Trafford next season but when the Dutch World Cup campaign finally comes to an end, it’s certain that the dealings will intensify.
Here are five candidates for LVG to consider from Brazil 2014.
1. James Rodriguez
A strong contender for the Golden Ball award as the tournament’s best player, Monaco’s Colombian international has indicated that he would be prepared to leave France due to the lack of competitive football in Ligue 1.
Manchester United have been linked with the 22 year old for some time but the bad news is that Rodriguez has said that he would prefer to avoid the Premier League due to the physical nature of the play over in England. However, the attacking midfielder may get an easier ride at Old Trafford than he did in the quarter final against Brazil where he was a clear target for some rough treatment.
A £65m transfer fee plus wages comparable to those he currently earns may be enough to persuade James Rodriguez to join the Old Trafford revolution.
2. Enner Valencia
United are priced at 6.60 with Betfair to win the Premier League in 2014-15 but if they are to recover from the issues of last season, there has to be adequate cover for the front men. Javier Hernandez may well be on his way out of Old Trafford so who does Van Gaal bring in to provide reliable back up for Rooney and Van Persie?
Valencia came into the World Cup with a record of 18 strikes in 23 games for Mexican club side Pachuca and he ended the tournament having scored all of Ecuador’s three goals in the campaign.
Admittedly he may get more game time at other clubs but the draw of playing at Old Trafford may be enough for LVG to clinch the deal.
3. Mats Hummels
The centre of defence remains a problem area for the club as we still await replacements for Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic. Hummels has been an alleged target for some time and he will have peaked Van Gaal’s interest after a positive World Cup.
Tight displays at the back have been supplemented by two important goals for Germany and there can be few better, potentially available centre backs in Europe right now.
4. Arturo Vidal
Juventus’ midfielder Vidal shone as his Chilean side took Brazil all the way to penalties in their round of 16 game and according to the Guardian, he has emerged as a £40m transfer target for Manchester United.
The 27 year old has been with Juve since 2011 and would undoubtedly add some much needed steel in the centre of midfield and while £40m may seem a little excessive, it’s claimed that the Turin club may be interested in taking Nani as part of the deal.
5. Angel Di Maria
Anyone who witnessed the first 117 minutes of Argentina’s round of 16 tie with Switzerland would have hoped that any link to Real’s Di Maria would quickly disappear. The 26 year old had a complete shocker but while most managers would have hauled him off at half time, the player repaid Alex Sabella’s faith with the winner in the closing minutes of extra time.
Overall, the World Cup hasn’t showcased Di Maria at his best while a thigh injury threatens to end his competition prematurely. Is a reported fee of €60m simply too much or would the midfielder be an adequate alternative should any move for James Rodriguez fall through?
Demaria is the most………
If not for his volatile temper, LvG will prove to be a better manager than SAF. For one, he is more astute tactically. For another, he certainly wouldn’t have made the major transfer bungles that SAF made; viz:
1. Selling Jaap Stam (regretted sale)
2. Selling Gerard Pique in 2008 for a song (£4m). Pique made the FIFA World XI in 2010, 2011 & 2012 with Vidic and Rooney only making it in 2012.
3. Refusing to sign the18 year old James Rodriguez, now probably the world’s most exciting talent for £5m, instead signing that lemon, Bebe then aged 20 for £7.5m
4. Losing Pogba to Juventus for nothing after refusing to pay Pogba £20,000 a week.
All these players, except Stam who has retired, now costs from £30-60m to buy.
Great manager that SAF was, he had his weaknesses and he was shown up tactically by Barcelona in the Champions League in recent years! That would never happen with LvG for he is famed for adapting to the resources available to him and working out a tactical game plan for the team facing him. Give him a squad of brilliant players and he’d win brilliantly. Give him a team of average players, he’d find a way to win!
I have not even gone into the other lemons that SAF signed but demotivating 2 of his players by failing to reward Antonio Valencia and Nani in 2 consecutive years after they were voted Player of the Year and then giving an increment to £250,000 a week to Rooney started the rot with all 3 players, which was further compounded by the clueless Moyes when he upped Rooney’s pay to £300,00 a week! LvG nixed the Tony Kroos pursuit as he knew that the £240,000 a week demanded by Kroos would cause internal dissensions and destroy team morale!
In his final years, SAF never gave youth a chance as he was chasing his dream of leaving a legacy of 20 League titles. LvG developed so many young players in his career and I believe that’d be the legacy he leaves United even if he does not last long in view of his fiery temperament! LvG is ahead of SAF in youth development and even if he doesn’t win the league this season, he’ll transform United into a team to be feared and respected again! LvG is an excellent manager who’s able to inspire players to bring their A-game to the field, although he’s not famed for managing those higher up the hierarchy.
I’d say that if politicking were to happen again during LvG’s watch as it did during Moyes’ tenure, the Board should stand unflinchingly behind LvG and remove the rabble rousers and that includes the Assistant Manager, Ryan Giggs!