The signing of Shinji Kagawa for Manchester United has raised just as many questions as it has answered.
There is no doubt that he is a good player, and the role he has taken in leading Borussia Dortmund to the German domestic double can not be understated.
If he can fit into United the way he has adapted to the Bundesliga he will be an undoubted success and for £12m, a bargain to boot in this market.
There have been questions raised about whether he would fit into the style of football united play, and whether he will be able to play in the same position in which he played for Dortmund.
A lot of these questions will be answered as the summer progresses and Sir Alex Ferguson’s transfer policy becomes clearer.
Fergie has stated in no uncertain terms that he expects his team to be challenging for the big trophies in May 2013, and if this is to be the case, more players need to be coming through the door at Old Trafford.
Kagawa is a promising start, especially after the disappointment which must have been felt at missing out on Eden Hazard. Centre midfield has to be the priority now as Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Darren Fletcher will all have limited game time next year.
The centre of the park, for so long United’s strong point ,has been on the slide for a couple of seasons now and it is long
past the time that some quality, young fresh legs were introduced there.
There are still rumblings about Luka Modric leaving Spurs and heading north to fulfil his Champions league dreams. Whether United are in position to splash out the sort of figures Harry Redknapp and Daniel Levy will demand is open to debate, but the focus seems to be on the right areas of the pitch.
However, even if Modric is added to Kagawa, the feeling is it would still be too lightweight. Modric has excelled in his position when he has had a battler to win the ball and do a lot of the dirty work, while he has pulled the strings and this would be no different at Old Trafford either.
For this to happen, it would mean the Glazers putting up the cash for a third midfielder and even the most optimistic of United supporter would not think that would be possible.
With the glut of centre backs and the return of Nemanja Vidic, the full back positions have also come under some scrutiny. Patrice Evra did not have the best season in a United shirt and while he is still only 31, in the France squad for the Euros and was captain in the absence of Vidic, many feel that his best days are behind him.
Writing him off completely could be premature, but there is no doubt that improvements are needed, and the competition could revitalise one of the best full backs in the Premier league.
The same can be said on the right flank. The Da Silva twins have been touted for the positions for a couple of years, and while Rafael has managed to hold down the right back position since Gary Neville retired, he has not convinced.
Fabio will be out on loan next season as he has been deemed not up to putting the required pressure on Evra, and Rafael while the holder of the shirt at present needs to greatly improve his defensive displays to hold onto it for any length of time.
There is also a call for another attacker, but it is doubtful that the Glazers will sanction so much transfer activity without a significant outgoing. Dimitar Berbatov looks like he will be off, but United will get no where near the money back which they paid for him, and there has been murmurs that Nani could be considering a switch to Juventus.
He has not quite reached his full potential, and there are those of the mindset who can not wait much longer. Results need to be virtually instant these days, and Nani may just have taken too much time to get to the required level a club like United expect.
With the Euros kicking off last night, players involved will not wanting to be sorting futures out while preparing for such huge games, so the recent flurry of activity may slow down a bit.
United like to get their business done early, so the tournament will not be helping if they are looking at players involved, which of course they are.
The main question will be though, how many of Ferguson’s targets will the Glazers sanction? If it isn’t enough United will not be able to compete with Chelsea and City next year, and if they can’t there will be no way Ferguson will stick around for another season of playing second fiddle to the still partying noisy neighbours.
image: © Paolo Camera
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