A soccer giant as large as Manchester United will always be in the spotlight when it comes to transfer rumors. And their revival in the Premier League has only led to that much more attention in that area as experts and fans attempt to predict who is next on the Red Devils radar.
After a rough start to the year, they’ve had an encouraging finish. Even though they are coming off a loss to Chelsea, they have still won four of their last five games in the Premier League and ascended to third place, ahead Manchester City – a feat that most people figured wouldn’t be possible this season. Even so, they are still a ways away from competing for an EPL title, so the rumors continue to persist on how the team can improve themselves. Here’s a look at the four hottest rumors surrounding the team.
Memphis Depay
According to the Daily Mirror, United is locked in a battle with Liverpool for the services of Dutch star Memphis Depay and could end up in a bidding war to bring him to the Premier League. Most reports have Liverpool unwilling to bid any more than 20 million euros while the Red Devils would be willing to go upwards of 25 million euros in order to get a deal done. This move would make sense for a number of reasons. When you consider that Depay really did break through on the world stage with Netherlands under Louis Van Gaal at last year’s World Cup, the obvious fit is there with Man U. PSV is closing in on the end of another dominant season and with so much young talent filling out their side, they could afford to move a player like Depay and not see much of a drop-off. The paper noted that Van Gaal will use his connections with PSV in order to ensure a deal gets done and it might only be a matter of time at this point.
Mats Hummels
There have been plenty of reports that United is close to getting a deal done with the German defender and it is believed that Hummels has shunned the idea of a move to Arsenal in favor of landing at Old Trafford. The latest rumors have Manchester United offering a 30 million euro bid once the transfer window opens and considering everything that Hummels would bring to the table, this is one move that has to be taken seriously with both sides very interested in getting something done.
Thiago Silva & Edison Cavani
Steve Bates of the Daily Mirror also noted that United is keen on luring the tandem of Silva and Cavani away from Paris Saint Germain and while acquiring the duo might be a little more difficult than the acquisition of Depay, that doesn’t mean it won’t happen. Van Gaal reportedly is very interested in adding a player like Silva if a bid for Mats Hummel does not work out while Cavani could make the United attack a little more diverse as a player that is capable of doing a little bit of everything. Van Gaal had an opportunity to sign Cavani a year ago and didn’t get a deal done but that doesn’t mean they won’t revisit the idea. Silva appears to be United’s top target from PSG but with the persistent rumors that Cavani could be in the mix it make sense to think one or both could end up at Old Trafford.
Miralem Pjanic
The Roma star has been talked about a lot as a player bound for the Premier League and while Liverpool would love to have him replace outgoing skipper Steven Gerrard in their midfield, there have been reports that United has revived its interest in him. United was among Pjanic’s many suitors before he signed a deal with Roma last year and that could mean something gets done when the transfer window opens again this summer.
