Five bold January transfers to boost Arsenal’s title charge

Typically for Arsenal, the Gunners are met with both an injury crisis and a ridiculously daunting Champions League tie after finishing second in their group. As Barcelona await, it’s hard to see manager Arsene Wenger navigating his way around the irresistible trident that is Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

However, perhaps not so typically for the side, is the fact they have a very good chance of actually winning the Premier League. Though Leicester sit atop the pile at the present moment, the North London giants will more than likely battle it out with Manchester City for the top prize in England.

Well, that is until we stop writing the Foxes off, of course.

Still, there’s room for improvement. As ever, the engine room is looking a little light in the wake of long term injuries to key duo Santi Cazorla and Francis Coquelin. The Gunners lack an anchor man to effectively replace the Frenchman, though how long have we been saying that?

Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez remain superstars at the club and perhaps the arrival of some winter reinforcements can help the pair lead Arsenal to the Premier League.

The last time his side were in this position, Wenger only saw fit to sign Kim Kallstrom in January 2014. Hopefully he does not make the same mistake again.

Here are five bold January transfers to help Arsenal win the league…

VICTOR WANYAMA

Wenger has stated that he is not interested in landing Victor Wanyama this January, though perhaps he should not be so quick to completely rule it out. The 24-year old Kenyan bruiser is exactly what his teams have been so desperately lacking over the last few years.

Though Coquelin has surprised everyone and made the anchor man role his own, the Saints star can help provide competition. With the fight for a starting berth so competitive in other positions, it seems odd that the tenacious midfielder is all but guaranteed his spot.

As Mathieu Flamini and Mikel Arteta enter the final six months of their deals, acquiring the former Celtic man would be very wise. Powerful and imposing, he’s exactly what the squad need.

MARCELO BROZOVIC

As far as ball playing midfielders go, the Emirates outfit are pretty well stocked. However, fast forward a few months and things could look a little light. Flamini and Arteta are expected to leave this summer, as is Tomas Rosicky.

Jack Wilshere cannot be relied upon at all to stay fit, so perhaps there is some room for new additions in the middle of the park. Inter Milan’s Marcelo Brozovic has re-emerged as a target this winter, after impressing on loan from Dinamo Kiev.

Reportedly available for around £11.9m, the 23-year old is a classy operator in the middle of the park, a centre-midfielder in an old fashioned mould. Perhaps not as not as talented as Cazorla, the Croatian international is tenacious and has an eye on goal.

When injuries hit, as they so often do in North London, the club can look depleted. A wise move should it come off.

DANIELE RUGANI

Daniele Rugani just can’t get a look in at Juventus, though that does not make him a bad player. The 21-year old has been touted as one of the brightest prospects in Italian football after his stunning form at Empoli last term and has been repeatedly linked to Arsenal.

A classy, ball playing centre-half with an ability to read the game many don’t at his age, he’s the next best option after John Stones. His stoic presence next to Laurent Koscielny could help form a truly solid base at the heart of defence in place of the aging Per Mertesacker.

Wenger should act now, it’s not often a young player with such huge potential becomes available to land from another big club.

NOLITO

It seems Olivier Giroud is either imperious or awful. The Frenchman is either lambasted for not being up to the required standard, or lauded for banging in the goals. It’s an odd predicament for the Gunners, who seem to be unsure whether to stick or twist with him.

Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott support him, and support him well, but another natural centre-forward could be a wise option. Wenger likes his versatility and the Spaniard is equally comfortable leading the line as he is being deployed in a wider area. Lethal in front of goal, the 29-year old could be a short term fix to secure on field success.

Long term planning is all well and good, but Wenger needs to prove he is still capable of leading the team to Premier League glory. Nolito can help him do that.

RIYAD MAHREZ

A move to Arsenal halfway through the sensational season at Leicester City may not be wholly attractive to Riyad Mahrez right now, who’d have thought it? Still, as previously stated, these are bold targets.

The Algerian has been utterly sensational this term with 11 goals and 7 assists as the Foxes outfox the chasing pack in the Premier League. He’s been doing things with his left foot, against big teams, that rival some of the best players in Europe.

While Mesut Ozil is the undisputed Number 10 at the Emirates, Mahrez can play wide and help wreak just as much havoc. The prospect of Mahrez, Ozil and Sanchez lining up behind Walcott/Giroud is mouth-watering. Crucially, it could be title winning.

Top Five Fantasy Premier League January signings you should consider

The January transfer window has finally drawn to a close, and it was fair to say that it wasn’t the most exciting.

That’s because the biggest transfer of the month came from STOKE CITY, who signed Giannelli Imbula from FC Porto for a club-record £18.3million while the likes of Manchester United did zip.

Manchester City did sign manager Pep Guardiola to put some sort of climax at the end of the window, but he won’t be arriving till next season so there’s no need to care about it just yet.

But for now, in Fantasy Premier League terms, there is quite a bit to look forward to.

Several smaller teams have strengthened well the past month, and these new players could afford Fantasy managers a decent differential in an attempt to catch up or jump ahead in their respective mini-leagues.

So to save you some time scrolling through all the available options, we rank the TOP FIVE Fantasy Premier League signings you should consider in your squads!

5. Giannelli Imbula

Giannelli Imbula (5.0) cost Stoke City a massive £18.3million, and the France U-21 ace will be expected to start every game for the Potters for the rest of the season.

And although he is a frowned upon anchorman, Imbula could be the perfect fifth midfielder for your squad in the second half of the campaign, guaranteeing you at least 2 points coming off the bench if required.

He does chip in with a few goals and assists as well, scoring two and providing three for Marseille last term.

4. Andros Townsend

Newcastle United have been one of the most frustrating teams to watch this season, playing like a top side against the big boys but then faltering against smaller opposition.

And one of the reasons for their poor consistency is they’re lack of creativity in midfield apart from Georginio Wijnaldum (7.1), but the arrival of Andros Townsend (5.8) is set to change that.

Signed from Tottenham for £12million, the England international will look to prove himself ahead of Euro 2016 and Fantasy managers gambling on the winger could reap the rewards.

3. Alberto Paloschi

At the start of the season, the most in-form striker was Swansea City’s Bafetimbi Gomis(6.3), with the attacker scoring four in his first four games of the campaign.

But suddenly the goals dried up, and so did his game time. This has seen him rotated with Modou Barrow (4.3) and Andre Ayew (6.8) from midfield, but now the Swans have signed a real goal poacher in Alberto Paloschi (6.0).

The former AC Milan ace has a decent goal-scoring record playing for Chievo Verona, scoring 45 goals in 153 games for the Serie A club. With Swansea’s possession-style football, Paloschi will certainly find some chances in and around the box in the second half of the campaign.

2. Benik Afobe

After losing Calum Wilson (5.3) to a long-term injury, Bournemouth have struggled to find a striker to replace the Englishman. So much so that he is still the leading striker in points despite only playing seven games at the start of the season.

The Cherries fixed that problem by signing Benik Afobe (6.1) for £10million from Wolves, and he has started Premier League life with a bang by scoring two goals in his first three games.

Now Afobe is set to lead the line until the end of the season, and is another worthy differential option up front.

1. Emmanuel Adebayor

At the top of the list can be nobody else but Emmanuel Adebayor (5.8), who has signed for Crystal Palace for free after half a season away from the Premier League following a fall-out with Tottenham.

Despite not playing at all this season, the Togo international has a proven track record in the English top flight, scoring double-digit goals in five seasons out of the nine campaigns he has featured.

And with the Eagles strikers struggling to score goals, it seems Alan Pardew will give Adebayor the opportunity to lead the line and if it pays off, you will have a cheap consistent goalscorer as one of your three forwards and have the money to invest elsewhere.

Can Leicester really finish what they’ve started now the pressure is on?

Before the start of what has so far proven a rather unpredictable Premier League campaign in 2015/16, the concept of Claudio Ranieri and his supposedly relegation-threatened Leicester City ever finishing anywhere near the top of the table seemed ridiculous.

Such a notion was barely even considered before a ball was kicked this term – especially within the King Power Stadium itself – but since then, Ranieri’s plucky Foxes have subsequently proven to be the most entertaining and successful outfit in the division, and it now seems nothing is impossible for them.

So then, after seeing off Manchester City in what could eventually prove the biggest game of the entire domestic campaign, can Leicester now handle the pressure of being title favourites, and is Ranieri on the verge of finishing the season on the greatest high possible down at the King Power Stadium?

Well, even though many of us fans within the English footballing community have nonetheless been forced to eat humble pie in light of Leicester’s inspirational rise this season, perhaps it’s still fair to suggest that the Foxes fail to represent a title-winning side when all is said and done.

It’s all well and good operating as determined underdogs, scrapping it out against some of the strongest and most well-defined squads in and around the top-four of the English top flight, but now that Leicester are seeing off their most significant title rivals in glorious fashion, the dynamic now looks set to shift across the rest of the season.

Let’s face it, with thoughts of the recent victory against Manchester City in mind, we are all now slowly coming to terms with just how effective this Leicester team can prove to be on their day. Although the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham still remain well-placed with all things considered, the idea of Ranieri continuing his fine run at the King Power Stadium is becoming more and more believable with every passing week.

Opposing teams will therefore approach their upcoming matches with Leicester in a slightly different fashion throughout the remainder of the 2015/16 campaign, forcing Ranieri’s impressive unit to work on the front foot more often, as opposed to simply relying upon good old fashioned counter-attacking tactics.

Put in no uncertain terms whatsoever, the pressure is now on for the Foxes, for their fans – and everybody else concerned with matters of the Premier League for that matter – know that Leicester are clearly no longer considered one of the weaker sides around.

But seeing as this current Foxes outfit have routinely proved writers, pundits, supporters and general football ‘experts’ wrong so far this term, surely now is the time to back Leicester and their ability to achieve the so-called impossible in 2015/16…

Although little more than a gritty relegation dog-fight was seemingly on offer for Ranieri’s team before their monumental rise up the English top flight, Leicester have ultimately proven the most cohesive unit operating within the Premier League so far.

The Foxes’ front-line has admittedly scored goals at an incredibly efficient rate, and the likes of Robert Huth and Wes Morgan simply don’t look like letting up any time soon at the back. Jamie Vardy has experienced a huge transformation in fortunes in front of goal this term, players like Marc Albrighton and Danny Drinkwater arguably deserve to be included in Roy Hodgson’s EURO 2016 squad with everything fairly taken into account, and in the once unknown entity of Riyad Mahrez, Leicester potentially play host to 2015/16’s overall best performer.

Regardless of where your elegancies lie this season, normal Premier League proceedings have seemingly come undone. Both Manchester City and Arsenal have looked far from untouchable, while the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool – and now even Chelsea – have witnessed slides.

With all that in mind, the concept of Leicester eventually winning the Premier League title still feels like a strange one, but as the 2015/16 campaign has proven anything but calculable thus far, such a notion remains far from the realms of impossibility.

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Arsenal manager defends Champions League performance despite 3-1 loss

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has defended his performance in the Champions League despite being knocked out in the round-of-sixteen for the sixth consecutive campaign, Mirror reports.

The Gunners had a tough task of overturning a two-goal deficit against Barcelona following their 2-0 loss in the first leg at the Emirates, and the expected happened as the European champions easily beat Wenger’s men 3-1 on the night.

The result means that Arsenal have crashed out of the competitions in the second round for the sixth straight year, but Wenger is adamant that his men showed the fighting spirit necessary to reignite their faltering season.

He said: “I’m pleased with the performance. The quality of our game was good. The performance shows our season is not over.”

The Frenchman went on to add that he was in awe of Barca’s attacking trident of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, and Neymar, who all grabbed a goal each in the fixture.

“I am disappointed with the result but we played a team with the best three strikers I’ve seen,” he added.

“From nothing they can create a chance. You must admire art. They have two or three players with the ability to transform normal life into art. Of course for me it is suffering as well but it is exceptional what Messi does.

“I give you the stats (six in a row). We have to consider game by game. You look at the positives and negatives and prepare for the next one.

“We have gone out against top sides, who went on and won the Champions League after. On one occasion we were completely guilty, against Monaco. The others were against Bayern and Barcelona twice.”

The Gunners will travel to Goodison Park to face Everton in their next league fixture as they attempt to catch Leicester City, who are 11 points ahead, at the top of the table.

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A £45m transfer deal Liverpool can and should refuse

The transfer rumour mill never stops churning and today it’s thrown up a real doozy, amid claim Paris Saint-Germain are ready to pounce for Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge and part with an eye-watering £50million for the privilege.

Of course, the hyperbolic world of transfer rumours is about as reliable as chocolate sandpaper (my skirting boards look like a dirty protest) especially when they’re produced by the Daily Mail – which in the world rankings of chocolate sandpaper is somewhere near the bottom next to a gravel-infused Curly Wurly.

But there’s something so unexpected and sensationalist about the rumour; the notion of a regular England international moving to the uncompetitive French top flight, the allegation that money-mad PSG want to pay such an outrageous sum for a striker whose table in the physio room comes with its own reserved towel; that it obliges our attention – even though there has already been a somewhat unconvincing denial from the Parc des Princes.

And perhaps the most obvious question, for reasons I’ve already alluded to, comes straight out of the Godfather. Laurent Blanc might not be about to sever Lucas Leiva’s head and place it alongside a sleeping Jurgen Klopp, but would a £45m bid from PSG represent an offer Liverpool can’t refuse?

The crux of the debate centres around two rather phenomenal set of statistics; Sturridge’s injury record vs. his scoring record in quite a tasty matchup.

The 26-year-old has netted 47 times in 81 appearances across all competitions since signing from Chelsea in January 2013 – including a prolific Premier League haul of 39 goals in 62 outings. He reached 30 league goals faster than any Liverpool player since the 1890s and produced the third-best return of any Liverpool player after 50 league games, his 33-goal haul bettered by only George Allan and John Parkinson of pre-World War One fame.

So statistically speaking, Sturridge is amongst the most potent strikers to ever don the Liverpool jersey – rather incredible, considering the Reds’ alumni of world-class strikers is so large any reunion would have to be held at Wembley stadium. Consequentially, he’s also one of the Mersey outfit’s most prolific goalscorers throughout the Premier League era, boasting a 0.63 league strike-rate that matches Luis Suarez, trumps Michael Owen and Robbie Fowler and falls just 0.01 behind Fernando Torres.

So logic suggests the Reds should fight tooth and nail to hold onto one of the most efficient goalscorers throughout the club’s history, or at least squeeze Laurent Blanc’s gentlemanly onions in a vice until he agrees to pay considerably more.

Not that Sturridge’s qualities are limited exclusively to hitting the net; he’s a silky striker and a smart player who can stretch defences on the counter or wriggle through them with his direct dribbling. The more subliminal aspects of his game often go underappreciated, but there’s a reason he and Suarez developed such a telepathic understanding during their 18 months together on Merseyside.

But of course, as Liverpool fans will be well aware, any argument worshiping Sturridge’s ability to make the onion bag consistently ripple with Scouse delight is juxtaposed by his harrowing injury problems.

Before returning to fitness in January, the England assassin had been unavailable for 54.8% of his three years on Merseyside, picking up 18 separate injuries that affected seven different body parts – including a hip problem that saw him sidelined for a whopping 165 days alone. Injury prone is a bit of an understatement; having a world-class career as a hospital patient destroyed by being occasionally forced to play for Liverpool is far more accurate description.

That has reduced Sturridge to just 19 Premier League appearances since the start of last season, only ten of which were starts. And of course, if you’re only available for 45.2% of games, the rest of the time you’re about as useful as… well, chocolate sandpaper – chocolate sandpaper you’re inexplicably paying £150k per week to cover your banisters in a murky brown. With that in mind, Liverpool should be biting Blanc’s hand off – and not in the torturous manner I suggested earlier in regard to his onions.

But there are other factors to consider. Firstly, is £45m a fair price? Considering the aforementioned injury problems, that may seem like Liverpool are pulling off the greatest daylight robbery since the 5p carrier bag tax, but in the context of the current market it’s by no means an astounding sum.

Two years ago, Barcelona paid £75m for Suarez and even that was considered a slight discount as a consequence of the Uruguayan’s lust for recreating scenes from 28 Days Later. Likewise, transfer fees have only inflated by the usual slapstick proportions since then, so is £45m enough for the Reds to source an equally talented replacement? Benteke set them back £32.5m just a matter of months ago and he couldn’t score in a crack house at the moment.

Secondly, Liverpool are in danger of gaining a reputation as a feeder club for Europe’s elite, even if offloading a crocked striker for the joint-second largest transfer fee received in their history, alongside Torres, is considerably more understandable than some of their recent transactions.

Indeed, Chelsea tempted away Torres, Barcelona swooped for Suarez, Man City stole Raheem Sterling, Javier Mascherano was nabbed by the Nou Campers and Real Madrid raided the Reds for Xabi Alonso. Spanning back even further, the trend started when Steve McManaman was lured to the Bernabeu in 1999 and Michael Owen followed him five years later.

With a world-class manager now at the helm, Liverpool should be holding onto their prized assets in what is meant to be a new era on Merseyside. And of course, it seems inevitable that the moment Sturridge leaves Anfield, he’ll never again break so much as a toenail, playing (and scoring) in every game as PSG lift the 2017 Champions League title and England lift the 2018 World Cup.

But Klopp is an expert recruiter, whose ability to spot and develop promising talent took Dortmund from the brink of financial meltdown to the 2013 Champions League final, lifting consecutive Bundesliga titles along the way. I’m sure there’s a lot he could do with an extra £45m in his back pocket – fill out his entire press conference wardrobe with Liverpudlian cultural references for a start.

Overall, it’s a really tough call that has equal potential to backfire for Liverpool as it does PSG. But personally, I would keep Sturridge until at least the end of next season. If Klopp can bring in the right players this summer and Sturridge can keep himself fit for at least 28 games next term, the Reds have a really good shot of qualifying for the Champions League. That’s a much stronger position to start deciding whose indispensable and whose expendable and at what cost.

Likewise, if PSG don’t revive their interest in summer 2017 and Sturridge is marooned on Merseyside, I can think of a lot worse situations than being stuck with an injury-prone top-class striker – having every wooden surface in your house covered in a layer of sandy melted chocolate, just in time for the parents’ annual visit on Easter Sunday, being one of them.

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West Ham have been amazing this season… and this pair deserve thanks

It wasn’t very long ago when a certain Icelandic contingent rocked up in east London.

They proclaimed that the best players would grace the Upton Park turf and that the club would be playing Champions League football within five years. In came expensive has-beens on pumped up salaries and then the wheels fell off.

The Icelandic banks fell foul of the recession and West Ham were left clinging onto the wreckage of a financial disaster. Administration looked likely and the downward spiral of a club in turmoil was very much on the cards, despite a couple of loosely tabled bids from interested parties.

However, in 2016, the club are stabilised and looking further forward than anyone in claret and blue could have dreamt as this season draws to a close.

In January 2010, former Birmingham City owners, David Gold and David Sullivan took control of the club. A 50% holding, which valued the club at £105m then, gave them the final say on all matters at Upton Park. Karren Brady joined as vice-chairman, but although the deal was completed in Sullivan’s name, Gold and Sullivan were named as joint chairman.

Speaking after the announcement, David Sullivan said: “We’re taking on a huge task at a club with enormous problems. It will take time for us to turn it around. We have short and long term goals,” he added. “In the short term we want to stay in the Premier League, in the long term, we would like to be challenging for the top four and the champions league.” It was made known by Sullivan that the club’s debts added up to an unbelievable £110m at the time.

What they’ve done since is incredible. Not only was there the immediate crisis left by the Icelanders, but also the legacy of continuing payments over the Carlos Tevez affair to Sheffield United.

The improving finances, the move to the new stadium and West Ham’s location will be of interest to foreign investors, but the pair are adamant that selling the club is not an option. They welcome investment, but it seems as though they will hand over the club to their children once they step aside and keep it within West Ham people.

The club are one of only eight in the Premier League with English owners and owners that have seen their initial £85.7m investment more than double in value since 2010.

Whilst debts remain, the club’s owners were optimistic that all external debt would be cleared prior to the Olympic Stadium move. Great strides have been taken in the past six years to turn a financially bereft and struggling club into one today that has fought for Champions League football and wants to sign world-class players this summer.

West Ham fans tweeted the board last summer, after a number of new signings joined the club, with admiration and thanks. That grateful affection has paid dividends on the field and will no doubt have encouraging financial advantages over the coming years, if success can be maintained and built upon.

The two David’s are true footballing alchemists.

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Liverpool join the hunt for Premier League winning Euro 2016 star

Liverpool fans in the Transfer Tavern are excited to hear that they’ve joined the hunt for a big signing, ad they rival a number of Premier League clubs for a midfielder’s signature.

The Daily Star says Jurgen Klopp is expressing an interest in Leicester City midfielder N’Golo Kante and the Reds are prepared to rival Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham in the market for the player’s services.

Kante enjoyed a fine season last term as Leicester stormed to the Premier League title but the Foxes are resigned to losing the 25-year-old midfielder, who starred for France in their opening Euro 2016 victory over Romania.

Following a bargain buy last summer, Kante is available for £22m this close-season and a host of big names are ready to activate that release clause, although Liverpool may find it difficult as they cannot offer Champions League football.

Our landlord reckons it’s a straight shoot-out between Arsenal and Spurs for the player’s services, as other interested parties can’t offer him action in Europe’s elite competition.

Where will Kante be playing next season? Let us know in the comments below!

Wenger picks two Arsenal players out in Watford win

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has paid specific tribute to Gunners pair Mesut Ozil and Rob Holding after his side’s 3-1 win over Watford on Saturday.

The victory at Vicarage Road was the North London side’s first of the new season and relieves some pressure from the French coach.

Ozil played an important part in the win, scoring Arsenal’s third with an excellent header, and Wenger was quick to praise the Germany international after the game.

“Especially in the first half [he was very good],” the French manager told the club’s official website.

“In the second half he dropped physically, but of course, we need him. I think what we’ve seen from him today is what we want from him, to give assists but he is going to score goals.

“So I am very happy that he scored today because that is what he is trying to add to his game.”

Ozil finished last season on top of the Premier League’s assists table and is an essential player to the Gunners’ attack.

Holding has retained his place in the Arsenal side after impressive performances since a summer move from Bolton Wanderers.

Wenger was quick to pick the young defender out for praise due to his partnership with Laurent Koscielny.

“An outstanding performance,” Wenger continued.

“I’m happy that you noticed that, because it’s important that a player who comes from Bolton, comes to a club where he concedes four goals in the first game at home, he has to play under huge pressure at Leicester and today he performs the way he does.

“I think it’s not easy and it shows some great potential and I am convinced that he will give a fight to all the centre backs.”

Holding’s role in the first team may well be under threat with the impending arrival of Shkodran Mustafi from Valencia but the young Englishman has thrived since moving to Arsenal.

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Five Serie A stars Man United should sign before Deadline Day

It’s three from three for Manchester United in the Premier League as it looks as though the Old Trafford club are getting back to where they were under Sir Alex Ferguson.

Obviously it’s too soon to draw to many comparisons between that era and this new one under Jose Mourinho, but there have been some ominous signs for the rest of the Premier League to chew over.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is flying already, whilst Eric Bailly has become the team’s best defender. United’s performances against Southampton and Bournemouth were controlled before the team went to Hull and bagged a last-minute winner thanks to youngster Marcus Rashford.

It’s that never say attitude that has seemed to be missing for the last few years that now appears to be back under the Portuguese, and he’ll surely be looking for extra players he can bring in to help the team.

There’s a few days left in the window and we think these five from Serie A would make the side even better…

Domenico Berardi

The Sassuolo man is one of the most talked about players in Serie A right now and with good reason.

He’s helped his side fully assert themselves in the Italian division in their first few seasons and they now find themselves in the Europa League group stages.

This progress will come at a cost, though, and Berardi will surely move to one of the continent’s biggest sides – United should make sure it’s them.

M’Baye Niang

The young AC Milan forward as a lot of the club’s future pinned on him but if the Rossoneri don’t pick things up soon he’ll be wanting out.

Niang is absolutely rapid when through on goal and whilst he may not get in the side instantly ahead of Ibrahimovic but once he retires United could have a front three of Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Niang, and that would be devastating.

Marcelo Brozovic

United lack width going forward and that is very strange for a Mourinho team.

Martial plays on the left but likes to cut in whilst Mata has started on the right but he prefers to play centrally. If they’re in a game where they need to stretch defences more they’ll need an outboard and the Inter Milan man would be ideal.

He’s straight to the scene of the action with his dribbling and will only improve in the next few years.

Mattia De Sciglio

Antonio Valencia has done well enough for United as a makeshift right back but surely Mourinho, who likes specialists in every position, would like to sign a proper right sided defender?

De Sciglio is just that and at 23-years-old, would be the ideal person to improve over the next few years with the rest of United’s young defence. He’s currently at AC Milan and could fancy moving if United come calling.

Lorenzo Insigne

Going forward, aside from Martial, Man United have little pace and that could be a problem in the tight games this season.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, as good as he is, is never going to burn away from defences and Wayne Rooney isn’t the quickest either.

United should look at Insigne because he is fast, knows how to score goals and can play off of top class forwards – he played with Gonzalo Higuain last season.

Home-grown hero backed to start Manchester Derby – "The boy’s on flames"

Sam Allardyce’s decision to leave Marcus Rashford out of his first ever England squad certainly raised some eyebrows.After all, the 18-year-old was one of the few players to make a difference as the Three Lions crashed out of EURO 2016 at the hands of Iceland and scored just minutes after coming on from the bench to land Manchester United a 1-0 win against Hull City two weekends ago.WANT MORE? >> Man United Transfer News | Latest Transfer NewsAnd those raised eyebrows were justified last night as Rashford instead featured for England’s U21 side – picking up a debut cap for that age group. The Junior Lions recordedÂa 6-1 win over Norway and the Man United striker was responsible for three of the goals, netting a hat-trick with twenty minutes to spare.

Needless to say, Manchester United team-mates, former England internationals, pundits and journalists were quick to heap praise on the youngster – who made his first-team debut for the Red Devils just a matter of months ago in February.

And there’s now a huge wave developing on social media, calling for Rashford to start in the Manchester Derby this weekend:

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