Ok, so no official confirmation and it may seem a tad presumptuous, but there seems to be a critical mass of opinion that LvG will go and JM will be the new manager. That said, it begs the question about exactly who will go ( Carrick for example, or might Mata want to move rather than stay with JM regardless of how settled he might feel in the side) and who will stay (de Gea - I bet he might seriously think about sticking along for the ride) and more importantly - who do we really need, not individuals, but what positions do we think need strengthening.
RB, RW, CB and proven 25-30 goal a season CF to bring in. Players to leave - Fellaini, Rojo. I hope we try and keep the rest. Existing players to give time to develop: Scheiderlin, Depay, Januzaj Existing players to keep as squad players if we can (but would be the next tier on the leaving list) : Carrick, Valencia, Young, Schweinsteiger, Jones.
Sadly I think Carrick has just lost something from his game - those impeccable passes and interceptions just seem to have deserted him and he certainly doesn't have the legs to track back and recover the ball from any misplaced passes. Fellani must go and I would be more than happy to have Zlatan come in and replace his height advantage but give us the added goal threat. I can see Mata leaving - didn't he and JM have a serious bust-up over something? In any event he seems to be a utility midfielder with no real definite role to play. I can see him heading back to Spain to try and resurrect his international career. I'm glad terry signed a new deal at Chelsea, I was dreading JM signing him up for us to give our defence some added steel, but having said that, I do think we need several 'aggressive' players in the side - we're just to soft. Whether it is the lack of physical contact in our 'passing game' or whether we simply don't have people who are prepared to mix it, I don't know, but I can see JM adding a few more players with 'fire' he seems to have had them in most of his sides.
We need right back, right wing, centre half and centre forward. All need to be very much finished articles so not John Stones for instance.
We definitely need a Keane, Viera Yaya style player. None of our midfielders have got the physique needed. Herrera or Mata do not seem aggressive enough. Fellaini was never suitable. Rooney could do the job but we need someone with legs that go a lot of the "water carrying". And we need a class CB to cover/replace blind who was never one.
So far then we seem to be at risk of losing - Blind, Rojo, Mata, Carrick, Fellani, Depay, Jones, Valencia, Darmian, Schneiderlin and Schweinsteiger. Not much or a rebuilding job then - and quite some budget needed too.
I don't see Darmian Blind, Schneiderlin or Schweinsteiger leaving. As for mata that is subjective, he might decide to stay and prove himself but we definietly need another no 10. Mata is great as no 10 but he lacks pace which can be forgiven if he has the vision of Ozil. Mourinho played him on the wing at chelsea, Moyes played him on the wing at United and LVG also played him on the wing... I think something is really wrong somewhere. Players to leave: Carrick, Jones, Rojo, Fellaini,,,,,,,,, Januzaj (to be frank he really has no chance so it is time for him to move on). Places to stregnthen: Right wing, CF, at least one CB, A box to box CM and if possible a very creative no 10. If we can't get someone very creative then we can as well not invest there as we have mata and rooney.
Januzaj has to be the biggest disappointment of the past two years. He really looked ready and up for it in his first year. He also failed to seize the opportunity when he went to Dortmund.
He's still only 21 for fks sake! Lingard didn't even make his debut until he was 21. Some fans today seem to have no concept of realistic expectations. I bet you two were writing off Ronaldo at the end of the 04/05 season too...
