Done Deal: Manchester United Set to Unveil £15m Dutch International Kevin Strootman as First Major Summer Signing

United deal to bring in PSV star all but done.
Manchester United look to have found their replacement for Paul Scholes as David Moyes will make PSV’s Kevin Strootman his first major signing of the summer.
The Dutch midfielder has been a target for United for some time, and the Red Devils are understood to have stepped up their interest in him this summer following Scholes’ retirement from the game.
New United boss Moyes has been keen to get his midfield issue addressed as he looks to take on the difficult task of replacing legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford.
There may be further arrivals yet, with the likes of Claudio Marchisio and Nemanja Matic being linked with the club, but Strootman’s immediate availability for a relatively low price of £15million has seen United keen to push the deal through, and it is expected that he will be unveiled by the club in the coming days after the finalisation of a few more details.

The 23-year-old jetted in to England to complete the move following his side’s exit in the European Under-21 Championships, where he impressed for the Netherlands in front of Moyes’ scouting team.
Although still eligible for the Under-21 side, Strootman is also a full Dutch international with 18 caps and one goal for the senior team, and has notched up 187 appearances in the Eredivisie already, featuring for the likes of Sparta Rotterdam and FC Utrecht before joining PSV in 2011.
His fine form for the Dutch giants also saw him attract attention from the likes of Arsenal, but he has supposedly been keen to wait for the right offer, and is confident in his ability to find success at Old Trafford.
United have already signed Uruguayan youngster Guillermo Varela, but Strootman is a big name that should convince United fans of their ability to still attract top talent even after the departure of Ferguson.
More additions in midfield may follow, as Moyes is said to be uncertain about the futures of the likes of Anderson and Tom Cleverley, meaning he will hope to persuade Marchisio to join the club from Juventus, and consider meeting Benfica’s considerable asking price for Serbian playmaker Matic.
United are also in the market for wingers and strikers this summer, as the likes of Wayne Rooney and Nani could be on their way out of the club. Another Benfica player Nicolas Gaitain has been linked with the club, as have strikers Robert Lewandowski and Karim Benzema.

Man United On the Verge Of Completing Deal to Sign Barcelona Midfielder Thiago Alcantara

by Mark Brus June 19th, 2013

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David Moyes close to completing move for Barcelona playmaker.
Manchester United are closing in on the signing of Barcelona playmaker Thiago Alcantara after the end of the European Under-21 Championships.
The 22-year-old has been linked strongly with a move away from Barcelona this summer due to his desire to play more regular first-team football. His starring role in Spain’s win at this summer’s tournament in Israel, with a superb hat-trick in the 4-2 final win over Italy, has backed up his point and led United to move quickly to snap him up ahead of the likes of Manchester City and Real Madrid.
New Red Devils boss David Moyes has been tracking a midfield playmaker for much of the summer as he is desperate to find a replacement for the retiring Paul Scholes, and was initially thought to be tracking Alcantara’s Barca team-mate and former Arsenal star Cesc Fabregas.
However, Fabregas has stated his desire to remain at the Nou Camp and improve his form, leading Moyes to switch his attention to Alcantara, though he had been unable to progress very far with talks while the youngster was on international duty.
But with the tournament now complete, it is understood that talks are progressing well and in all likelihood Alcantara will be a Manchester United player by next week, becoming Moyes’ second signing of the summer after Uruguayan youngster Guillermo Varela.
This will be a major boost for United, as the Spaniard has all the makings of a world class footballer, only unfortunate to find himself behind the likes of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Fabregas at Barcelona. In limited appearances for Tito Vilanova’s side in 2012/13, he still managed to make an impact with 2 goals and 5 assists.
But with Barcelona targeting bigger names this summer, they are thought to be happy to sell Alcantara to help raise funds for a £30million move for Chelsea’s Juan Mata, who seems to have been made available by new Blues manager Jose Mourinho.
Manchester United’s spending will not end there though, as Moyes is still keen for more midfielders, both defensive types such as Marouane Fellaini or Ilkay Gundogan, and wingers such as Nicolas Gaitan.
Still, with the signing of Alcantara Moyes will have managed to get one of his major priorities out of the way, and could have solved United’s midfield problems for many years to come.
Although a fee is yet to be confirmed, it is thought that the midfielder will sign for between £15 and £18million, looking a good piece of business against other targets such as Claudio Marchisio, valued at £30million, and Nemanja Matic at £38million.

Manchester United will move ‘heaven & earth’ for Fabregas

Manchester United transfer news: Cesc Fabregas at top of transfer wish-list, claims Denis Irwin

Denis Irwin claims Manchester United will ‘move heaven and earth’ to bring Cesc Fabregas to the club this summer.
The former Red Devils full-back still works for the Old Trafford outfit in an ambassadorial role, and claims the Spanish international has ‘zoomed up’ the club’s list of transfer targets.

Irwin, who won 56-caps for the Republic of Ireland during his playing career, was one of the first pundits to reveal Manchester United’s interest in Robin Van Persie last summer, according to ESPN.
"Cesc Fabregas has zoomed up Manchester United's transfer target list to the top position and the champions are going to move heaven and earth to get him," he told the Sunday World newspaper.
"The Barcelona star wants out of the Nou Camp and United want him badly, so the deal should be done easily enough. Fabregas is just the sort of all-action midfield player United need if they are to make a run at next season's Champions League.
"Cesc won't be short of offers for I believe this is going to be a transfer season where eye-boggling amounts of money will be spent."
Irwin also predicted that new Manchester United manager David Moyes will be making moves for full-backs Leighton Baines and Luke Shaw, whilst suggesting that Patrice Evra and Luis Nani might be going in the opposite direction.
"Nani will go to Monaco and Patrice Evra may well return to the same club, from whom he joined United. I've also heard a word that the new manager might have Luke Shaw at the top of his list. The teenage Southampton full-back is the latest in a long line of prodigies from that club's excellent youth system," he concluded.
Arsenal are thought to have a first-option on Fabregas after they sold the player to the Nou Camp two summers ago, whilst Moyes has worked with Baines at Everton.
Shaw is a relatively new name on the Manchester United radar, having previously been linked with Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal.

Manchester United reject £6m winger bid

Manchester United transfer news: £6m bid for Nani from Galatasaray rejected

Galatasaray have claimed Manchester United turned down a £6m bid from the Turkish giants for Portugal international Nani, according to Goal.com.
Galatasaray chairman Unal Aysal told Turkish newspaper Milliyet that United rejected their approach for the winger, who is out of contract next summer.

And Aysal revealed the Premier League champions are holding out for closer to £8.5m.
Speaking to Milliyet, Aysal said: "We offered €7m (£6m) for him. But they didn't accept. We can't give more than this.
"We are not going to follow Nani anymore. We can't give more than €7m for him. They want €10m (£8.5m). Because of this he is not on our transfer list anymore."
Nani has been strongly linked with a move away from Old Trafford this summer, with Ligue 2 champions Monaco reportedly interested.
He endured a disappointing campaign last season, making just seven Premier League starts. And the 26-year-old recently admitted his future could lie away from United.
But it seems the Old Trafford club are holding out for a bigger fee for the player that joined from Sporting Lisbon in 2007.
Galatasaray have been big players in the transfer market over the past six months, bringing in Didier Drogba and Wesley Sneijder. And the Turkish champions made a run to the Champions League quarter-finals only to fall to Real Madrid.
Nani's place in the United first-team squad could come under fresh threat next season when £15m signing Wilfried Zaha joins the club this summer.

Manchester United close in on 'new Makelele' signing

Manchester United transfer news: Nampalys Mendy set to leave Monaco on a free transfer

 

 

Manchester United look set to complete the free transfer signing of highly-rated Monaco star Nampalys Mendy, reports the London Metro.
The 20-year-old midfielder has shocked club officials after revealing that he has no intention of signing a new contract with the French club, leaving manager Claudio Ranieri frustrated and disappointed by his decision. 

"I do not understand his attitude," said the Italian. "As soon as I saw him play, I said here is our Makelele. I trusted him and I played him.
"I think he will miss out on a great deal. But it's his life, not mine. He has preferred to listen to his brother and agent and not his coach. It's a shame."
The France U21 international is believed to have had his head turned by alleged interest from Manchester United, with new manager David Moyes ready to lure the new Claude Makelele to Old Trafford this summer.
Mendy made 31 appearances last season helping Monaco secure promotion back to Ligue 1, but has decided to turn his back on the club that gave him his first-team breakthrough, requesting to leave Stade Louis II when the transfer window reopens after rejecting the offer of a new contract.
Manchester United are ready to pounce by luring the player to the Premier League, and will have been impressed by his recent performances in the U20 Toulon Tournament, where Mendy helped  France to a third-place finish on Saturday following a 2-1 victory over Portugal.

 

 

Moyes prepares £40m offer for Barcelona playmaker

Manchester United boss David Moyes aiming to beat Arsenal to Barcelona star Cesc Fabregas

Manchester United boss David Moyes is aiming to beat Arsenal to the summer signing of Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas by promising to build his team around the Spaniard, according to The Sun.

The Gunners, who sold Fabregas to the Nou Camp club in 2011, have first refusal on the 26-year-old playmaker, but the report claims Moyes hopes to price Arsenal out of the race with a stunning £40m bid.

Fabregas has struggled to cement his place in the Barcelona first-team since he arrived from the Emirates Stadium. But even following the announcement that Neymar will join this summer, Fabregas still insists he’s happy to fight for his place at the Nou Camp next season.

Regardless, Moyes hopes the carrot of regular first team football at Old Trafford will make the World Cup winning midfielder think twice. Moyes is keen to structure his team around the passing ability of Fabregas, and wants to make him his marquee signing of his first summer in charge.

Central midfield is a cause for concern for the former-Everton manager. With Paul Scholes retiring and Darren Fletcher still sidelined, much of the burden is carried by Michael Carrick and Tom Cleverley.

Fabregas would go a long way to solving that problem, but any deal is complicated by Arsenal’s first refusal agreement with the Spanish giants.

Arsene Wenger has been linked with a move to bring his former captain back to the Premier League, but the Gunners boss cannot match the financial firepower of Manchester United.

The report claims Fabregas is planning talks over his future with Barca boss Tito Vilanova next week.