The return of Paul Scholes has been most welcome at Old Trafford, but will it be enough?
This question will have more weight at the end of the season if the Red Devils finish without a trophy.
Right now without a crystal ball it is difficult to definitively assess, even though we suspect they may find themselves short.
What we can say is that there remain big questions to answer about the state of Manchester United’s midfield.
Tom Cleverley is back soon, but it is a gamble of United to put most of their eggs in his basket. Paul Pogba got a chance last night, he is a good prospect but is he ready to be thrown in?
So what of Wesley Sneijder? Should United have splashed out this January?
We say no, ideally they would have done a deal last summer, but having not done so that boat has sailed.
He would have cost £30 million plus, but if the club were going to do this deal they should have done so six months ago. Now at that price? Forget it, the club have moved on to look at younger and cheaper options. That plus he made himself unavailable early on into the window.
Xherdan Shaqiri?
The Swiss midfielder is the ideal man to rejuvenate Manchester United’s midfield.
He is creative, combative, a scorer of goals and a mazy dribbler, and would have injected a freshness to United that they have often lacked.
Shaqiri plays for Basel who knocked United out of the Champions League, and while he may have been sceptical about ‘dropping down’ to the Europa, surely the Red Devils worldwide stature and support could have persuaded him if a deal was struck between the two clubs.
It is likely a deal could have been done for between £15 million and £18 million.
While costly, he is far from Sneijder levels of expense, and is several years younger.
United could have missed a great opportunity to sign a player who will take them forward.
They should make him among their top targets this coming summer.
So our verdict is NO to Sneijder but YES to Shaqiri.
The months ahead will be the acid test of whether Sir Alex Ferguson’s lack of willingness to spend on a midfielder this January was a costly decision.
– Should United have bought a midfielder?
images: © Patrick de Laive, © Patrick de Laive
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