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| LVG to offload six United flops Posted: 17 Jul 2014 12:48 AM PDT
Van Gaal introduced himself to the squad yesterday, took charge of his first training session in the afternoon and will officially be unveiled as new Manchester United manager today but, even though he hasn’t seen all of his players in action, the 62-year-old has already been active behind the scenes.
Most of today’s newspapers claim that Van Gaal is determined to have more streamlined squad than the one that began last season under David Moyes and will instruct Ed Woodward to get rid of those players he feels are not good enough to play for Manchester United. With Ryan Giggs retired, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic leaving as free agents and Patrice Evra poised to join Juventus, the squad which will begin the Premier League campaign next month is likely to look a lot different than the one in action at Southampton at the end of May. Tom Cleverley and Chris Smalling are among those whose future is under threat, according to the Guardian. Cleverley has only 12 months left on his contract and has become a pantomime villain among the fans for his poor performances, while Smalling is yet to show he can be consistent enough to be a first choice centre-back at United and could be used as part of the deal to bring Thomas Vermaelen to Old Trafford. Shinji Kagawa, Javier Hernandez and Ashley Young all have two years left on their contracts and will all be intensely scrutinised by Van Gaal, as will Darren Fletcher, whose contract expires at the end of the season. The Mirror, meanwhile, goes even further by claiming that more players will be added to the list, with Marouane Fellaini, Anderson, Bebe, Nani, Wilfried Zaha and Nick Powell all poised to be shown the door by Van Gaal. Bebe’s move to Benfica is imminent and Anderson’s day at Old Trafford are numbered after season after season of mediocrity, but offloading Fellaini and Nani could be more complicated, given the money United paid for the former and that the latter currently earns £90,000-a-week. Zaha and Powell might be surprise inclusions in the list of players Van Gaal deems expendable but reports suggest the Dutchman is keen to give youngsters a chance by bringing the likes of Will and Michael Keane, Jesse Lingard, James Wilson and Tom Lawrence into the first team squad. |
| Contrasting reports on United’s number one target Posted: 16 Jul 2014 08:24 AM PDT
Vidal has long been linked with a move to Old Trafford this summer, with reports suggesting he could be moving to United for around £32m, while other sources claimed United would try and get the Chilean for a cheaper fee and some reports in the Italian press last night suggested that United were ready to present a €44m – £35m – offer for the 27-year-old.
Juventus were last night rocked by the sudden and unexpected resignation of Antonio Conte, who departed the club after winning three consecutive Serie A titles. Conte’s departure was seen by many as yet another indication that Juventus might indeed be bracing themselves for allowing one between Vidal and Paul Pogba to leave the club, but the Serie A champions today dismissed such notions. "Vidal is not for sale," Marotta said today, in a press conference organised for the official unveiling of new Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri. "He is one of the most important players in the squad. He is happy to be here. Many things have been written. “We've never put him up for sale. Important clubs have asked after him, but we have never sat down to talk. The player decides and yesterday Vidal showed that he is happy to continue with us." With each passing day the saga surrounding the Chilean midfielder gets more complicated, with contrasting reports emerging from different sources. According to Jamie Jackson, Manchester’s football correspondent for the Guardian, United have decided against opening talks with Juventus for the Chilean, as he was a David Moyes’ target and while Louis Van Gaal is still considering the Juventus midfielder as an option, the United manager is thought to be willing to explore his alternatives first. Jackson’s story contradicts Andy Mitten’s reports from yesterday, in which claimed that a deal to bring Vidal to United was indeed being worked on. Readers of United We Stand, the fanzine which is edited by Mitten himself, will be well aware of how well linked and extremely reliable he is and while Jackson and other journalists are also well linked with club’s sources, they might have simply being briefed different informations. After the shambles that unfolded 12 months ago, United look determined to keep their very close to their chest this summer and while it’s harder to guess the club’s strategy, the current approach is much more sensible than the one Moyes and Ed Woodward adopted last year. On the other hand, Marotta’s quotes about Vidal should be taken with a pinch salt given the circumstances in which Juventus find themselves at the moment. Conte’s departure has sparked discontent among their fans, who have not only been disappointed by his resignations but also by the club’s decision to replace him with former AC Milan manager Allegri and when one considers the situation surrounding the Serie A champions, their stance on Vidal seems perfectly logical. |
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