5 wingers Manchester United should target this summer
Manchester United started the 2017 – 2018 season as the runners-up in the UEFA Super Cup, where they lost to Real Madrid. It was an indication of how the season would turn out, as United ended up as runners-up in FA Cup as well and were 2nd in the League behind Manchester City. They could only advance up to the Fifth round of the EFL Cup, where they were knocked out by Bristol City. In the Champions League, they could not overcome Sevilla in the round of 16, drawing away from home and losing the game at Old Trafford 1-2. The FA Cup final loss to Chelsea put things into perspective – Manchester United would need reinforcements.
Last season, United had a galaxy of talent on the left wing, with Martial and Rashford competing from the start and Alexis Sanchez claiming the spot from the winter transfer window. Romelu Lukaku was Manchester United’s top scorer, with 27 goals. Behind him were Rashford and Lingard both on 13 and Antony Martial on 11. Incidentally, Lingard was preferred through the middle, whereas Rashford and Martial preferred the left side of the field. Mkhitaryan was deployed on the right after his blistering start to the season, but he grew ineffective and faded away. Apart from him, Juan Mata was preferred mostly on the right side and he could muster only 3 goals. Martial, Rashford, Lingard all had brief stints on the right sides, some days from the start, on other occasions while gunning for a win. Yet it was clear as day that none of the players at United’s disposal made their mark there, they could not stake a claim for the position that clearly had no favourites. And therein lies the gravest of problems for the Red Devils.
United started the 2018 Transfer United smartly, signing Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk and soon confirmed the addition of 19-year-old Portuguese Right Back Diogo Dalot from FC Porto. It seemed that United were going on the right track and fans were desperate for the next addition. But in a strange turn of events, things cooled down and there have been no more arrivals till date, bar the free transfer of 35-year-old Lee Grant, who is unlikely to make a major impact. With endless transfer rumours doing the rounds, the agitation and nervousness among fans are building. The priority right now, without any doubt, is the right side of attack. Manchester United will be spending days and nights over those scouting reports and zeroing on the next signing even as we speak.
As such, we take a look at 5 potential candidates who could fit into the vacant space and make United a better team. Go Get at least one of them, Ed!
#5 Willian
Brought into the Chelsea team by Jose Mourinho in 2013, Willian’s record in the English Premier League is phenomenal, something which will attract United. He is a PL-proven material and his relationship with his previous Manager also seems to be quite good. He is also known to have combined well with Matic and can play down the right. He is technically gifted, like all Brazilians and has a variety of skills in his repertoire and is fast on the counter. He also tracks back, which makes him a typical Mourinho player, but there are some doubts about his consistency, especially since he failed to regularly impress with the Brazil side in the World Cup. Apart from that, age will also be a factor, as he will turn 30 come August. Also, he might not be the star signing that the Manchester United marketing team will be looking to bank upon. But the most important aspect of this transfer is whether Chelsea would be willing to sell another of their star performers leave to a direct rival for the second year running, especially now that Hazard seems set to be joining Real Madrid. Looks rather tough.
What the papers say: Manchester Evening News say that a move is still on the cards, even though it is directly linked to the Hazard transfer saga. MEN report that it would take 70m for United to prise him away. Barcelona looked to have him in the radar, but according to Spanish sources, the Catalan giants have cooled down their interest now.