New central midfielder

Let's Football Manager it for a minute. Ignoring all reality (i.e. which players will be let go by their clubs, what other clubs will bid etc), who would we most like to sign to bolster our central midfield in the summer? Assuming Scholes retires and Hargreaves is let go, we will have Carrick, Fletcher and Anderson as our three main CMs, with Giggs playing some games and Cleverley and / or Gibson as backups.

The main candidates, imo, are:

Wesley Sneijder. Will be 27 next season.
Role: Attacking playmaker / midfield general.

At first glance, Sneijder fits the bill perfectly, and is as close to a like for like Scholes replacement as we could hope for. He's proved he can play in a 442 in his first season at Madrid. However, he hasn't had much experience in a side with as much width as Utd, and will he work well with Rooney dropping into midfield and crowding the hole? And can we play him with Anderson or Carrick, or will that leave us defensively short in midfield? After all, some of Sneijder's defensive efforts make Scholes look like a defensive genius...

Daniele De Rossi. Will be 28 next season.
Role: Holding mid / box to box.

Has shown good flexibility, playing as a holding midfielder for Roma and a box to box for Italy, when Gattuso is holding. So he should fit well with all of our current midfielders, and still leave the hole free for Rooney to drop into. Although he's getting on a bit, and may not be creative enough to fill the gap in midfield. With De Rossi and Fletcher / Carrick, would we be able to break down other teams, or would we still be reliant on Giggs for creativity in the big games?

Douglas Costa. Will turn 21 in September.
Role: Attacking playmaker

Young, talented and skillful, and already performing at a high level. He looks as creative as Scholes and Sneijder, but also young enough for us to train him and integrate him into our system. Also a quite prolific goalscorer. But still pretty inconsistent, even in the Ukrainian league, and will he make it in the PL?

Steven Defour. Will be 23 next season.
Role: Attacking midfielder / central midfielder

Also young and talented, and performing at a high level. But not particularly prolific for an attacking midfielder. Can we afford another CAM who doesn't score many when we've already got Anderson? And imo Defour tends to try and create from deeper positions, so we could end up with the same problem we have when Scholes and Carrick play together and no one links midfield and attack.


So who should we go for? Are there any good options I've missed?

Personally I think we should go for Costa. Whilst he would probably take a couple of years to develop, and we might miss out on the title next season as a result, he should work out better in the long run. If we go for Sneijder or De Rossi, we'd be more solid in the league, but more likely to fall short either offensively or defensively in Europe. And we'd still need to replace / reinforce for the future.

 

Honestly I would take a punt on Adel.

 

I defnately agree that it is important to search for a long term fix and not just a player who will start declining in three seasons. Both Sneijder and De Rossi push that limit, but Sneijder in particular could be at his peak for the next 4-6 years so he would be OK. De Rossi i would not buy as by 2013 we'd already have to start thinking about his long term replacement.

For me this is also the big benifiit of De Costa who unlike the other 3 will improve in the next few years, we could keep him for as long as we wanted and he would have a lot of re-sale value.

 

We will look for some young talents in the summer. We will sign an experienced goalkeeper and sign 2 creative talents in the summer and I hope it is Adel and Costa. I hope the likes of Gibson and Obertan are sold Hargo realeased and I hope Scholes retires to (great player but I would rather him retire still on top). There is no point getting Wesley as if he does not settle in quick he never will, simply because of his age. Cleverly will come back and having Costa and Adel will give us a great base for the future. Anderson and Carrick and Fletcher will be the more experienced players. If we win number 19 we really need to start looking to the future.

 

de rossi and sneijder, I would ofload Nani for one of them plus cash

 

Can Fletcher play as a Defensive MF?

If so, sneijder could play in front of him

 

I think we need 2 tbh, if we want champions leagues, we need better

 

From these quotes

Speaking to reporters in New Jersey after publicising the club's upcoming pre-season tour of the USA, Ferguson said: "We have certain targets in mind and two or three will be fulfilled.

"The Glazers have always been very supportive in terms of the desire to improve the team.

"Where we are good at is bringing in young players, the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez. We’re good at that, so I don’t see why we should change.

"With Hernandez, we have one of the best young strikers in the country. We’ll continue the way we’re going and when the right young players are identified, that’s the way we will go."

It looks likely we will sign 2 or 3 players but they will be young. Most likely we will sign a experienced goal keeper and 2 top young talents. I could be wrong but that is what Ferguson has said. It looks near certain we will sign young players and I doubt we will sign 2 experienced players like Wesley and De Rossi as they have hit their peaks, and it does not suit our model of youth. We have a model and philosophy built on young talent and that is the way we will go. Ferguson believes it is the best way, so who are we to say otherwise? I would rather young talent over old any day of the week because they can progress through the club. Nani won't be sold for an older player anyway after having such a great season, so that possibility is impossible.

 

That would be his best position

 

I think Fletcher's better as a box to box midfielder. He's strong defensively, but doesn't sit and hold all that well. I'd be a bit worried with Fletcher and Sneijder playing alongside each other. Then again, Keano was a box to box and he worked out fine with Scholes.

I think we'll probably need to sign four players in this window. A GK, a proven CM like Sneijder or de Rossi, a young CM like Costa and a young talented wide player as back up for Nani and Valencia. Then promote Cleverley and one of Diouf, Welbeck and Macheda to the first team squad and we'll be looking good for next season.

 

Park Ji Sung.

 

You mean as a back up for Valencia and Nani? I'd consider him more of a specialist - someone to do a more defensive job on the wings in big games. Besides which, you need more than three wingers to be a top team - you really need two players for each position if you want to challenge on a regular basis. We could rely on Giggsy and Park as backups, but they're getting on a bit, and I'd like to see someone young brought through before they start to fade.

 

I think if we want young talent in midfield we would do well to sign a player better than our current youth crop. I'm not saying they should play week in week out, but cleverly pogba tunnicliffe keane and others could fill in if we have injuries and I think cleverly and welbeck will be squad regulars next year. Finally we have Morrison who may feature as long as he stays out if jail, and I get the feeling that one of the young players may step up in a similar way to wilshere. I get the feeling this will be pogba as he solves our box to box midfielder problem and physically he seems he would be able to handle the epl. Obviously he won't play every game but I think signing a young mid will either waste money or talent we have created.

EDIT: this post is meant to back swarbs up not contest him just read it through and didn't want a misunderstanding

 

My thoughts on some of the positions brought up above:


GK - Kuszczak and Lindegaard are both unproven but that is not to say they can't perform given the No 1 Shirt. Most of us would like to see SAF sign one of De Gea, Neuer and Akinfeev, but their transfer fee is far too expensive for us. So, therefore we should try the current two before rushing to spend on another. The outcome of developing Kuszczak and Lindegaard may very well be a top GK.

DM - I think everyone hopes that Hargreaves will recover but in reality it is very unlikely. We currently have Fletcher and Carrick to play this role and I personally do not mind either of them but neither is a hard tackler in the mould of Keane or Essien. Players like Diarra, Busquets and Schweinsteiger have been mentioned, all are going to cost a lot of money. One would solidify this position in our squad though.

AM - Anderson is heir apparent to Scholes. I think he is beginning to become a dependable player. Buying someone to compete with him will cost a lot and stop his development. I think stick with him. Gibson and Cleverley can gain experience behind him. Modric or Gourcuff are also names whom were mentioned for this position, but both of their parent clubs would slap a ridiculous price tag on both of them.

LW - Area of need. Giggs is showing age leaving only Nani and Park for this position. Sanchez is also a player who is capable of playing in this position, and should put considered for this position once the Summer transfer window re-opens. For those of you that think Bale should replace Giggs, I cannot see that happening to be honest. In my opinion, Bale is too expensive.

 

... I disagree

 

Alex, Giggs does not have the pace needed to play on the wing due to the fact he is ageing, and most likely to retire next season. As you know, the Premier League is becoming a tougher league to play in as each year goes by to be honest. The likes of Nani, Bale and Nasri are examples of wingers whom can take on opposition full backs. A task which Giggs cannot perform for a whole 90 minutes.

 

Hizmo we will buy a new keeper and this is a fact, Tomasz is leaving without a doubt and he confirmed this himself.

"I'm definitely leaving the club. My time in Manchester is coming to an end,” Kusczak told reporters.

"I've worked hard for five years but I never played as much as I wanted. It's a shame the manager didn't really give me a chance.

"I always believed I can be Edwin van der Sar's successor. Unfortunately, Sir Alex has decided differently.

"Even though I played many games, I spent most of my time on the bench."

The 29-year-old has started just 30 Premier League games since joining in 2006 and has cited his international chances as the reason behind his decision to leave.

“I accepted that as I had a great rival, one of the world's best keepers, and Manchester was the only club where I could accept that role for so long.

"But I've had enough of waiting. I want to play in Euro 2012. Staying here I could be left out by Poland's coach.

"I spoke to Alex Ferguson about my role on many occasions.

"The manager was in a difficult position. But he also knew Edwin is retiring after this season so he could give me a few more chances to play.

"We didn't speak that much to convince me next year I can be No.1."

With VDS AND KUTZ both leaving in the summer that leaves Anders and Amos and 2 keepers is just not enough so it is dead cert we will sign a new keeper. It won't be De Gea as he is too young. It will likely be Adler or Martin Skletenburg.

Ferguson has confirmed we will sign 2 other players and he has said " 2 or 3 players will be fulfilled".

 

"This is a fact."

I'm sure many of us have witnessed Nohlman constantly use that term in order to state his deluded opinions.

 

I am aware of a need to find a long term replacement, but suggesting Giggs is no longer capabe and that the left wing (Could also use Nani/Fabio/Park)is an area of need is wrong IMO. Just look at how Giggs performed today for one example of how he is not passed it yet.

 

Hizmo what have you against me? Stop likening me to "nohlman" because it is getting very boring.

As for deluded is this not enough evidence for you? "I'm definitely leaving the club. My time in Manchester is coming to an end,” Kusczak told reporters

He has said he WILL leave and that is as near a fact as it can get. He wants to leave and has stated the manager has no plans for him. He openly has stated this, only someone who was deluded would say otherwise. Have you got any evidence that he will stay? I think "I'm definitely leaving the club" is enough to back my case.