January sales at Manchester United

Five premier league defeats later and 8 points of the summit of the premier league at the half way point of the season. Faced with a fight for top four rather than title retention and with plenty of talk around who Moyes should sign, we ask who needs to go in the upcoming transfer market to make room for some new faces?

The transfer market opens in 3 days time, this signals a chance for Moyes to really stamp his mark on the squad in the post Ferguson era (assuming he didn’t get chance to in the summer…..but that’s a whole different story all together and one we won’t revisit).

There have been plenty of ‘boo boys’ around Old Trafford this season, and sometimes even directed at individual (United) players, which in my opinion is never right. However there must be a reason for the OT crowd to get on the backs of some players so readily and frequently.

Nani – Nani has taken the brunt of this when things aren’t quite going to plan. Game after game he fails to deliver on a constant basis. We know he has talent, he has shown this in the past, but consistent mediocrity with glimpses of class aren’t good enough for Manchester United. On the other hand it seems unlikely that 3 months after giving him a new contract that Moyes would off load the winger, but stranger things have happened. One thing that should be said about Nani is that he offers something different, he gets forward and is always looking to attack, whether successful or not it’s more than some of the squad have offered this season. If he is to stay he needs to cut the theatrics out of his game and show a bit of bottle, which will help his reputation hugely. He either needs an extended run in the team, which seems unlikely, or he needs to go. With several French and Portuguese teams apparently interested if the right offer comes in we can only see one outcome.

Likelihood of leaving 7/10

Anderson – Anderson, the new Ronaldinho they said, but he never quite lived up to his obvious potential. That probably wasn’t a fair comparison in the first place, however years of not performing, and obvious problems with fitness, it seems obvious that Ando’s time is up. Turns out Anderson wasn’t that much better than Kleberson after all.

Likelihood of leaving 8/10

Hernandez – The little pea has had a decent Manchester United career, scoring some very important goals. However he obviously isn’t happy with playing a bit part role at United. Coming on as a substitute in the odd game clearly isn’t enough for someone of his ability. His lack of playing time at United has not been due to any fault of his own. An obvious fan-favourite at OT but there is not a lot he can do when the manager has Robin Van Persie and Wayne Rooney at his disposal. Will he leave this January? Probably not, however next summer is a defining period in the career of Javier Hernandez as he enters his prime.

Likelihood of leaving 5/10

Fabio – While his brother has gone on to cement a regular place in the United first team, Fabio’s name is no where to be seen. He struggled with injuries during his loan spell at QPR last season, and this seems to have had an effect on his Manchester United career with Buttner often preferred as the second choice left back behind Evra, and Moyes opting for Smalling as a make shift RB in place of the injured Rafael. This on top of Moyes’s constant flirtation with Leighton Baines among others, it would seem there is no place for the Brazilian going forward. With the World Cup just around the corner, the full back will be eager to show his worth in the 6 months leading up to the tournament, which it seems he will need to do elsewhere.

Likelihood of leaving 9/10

Ashley Young – Another player on the receiving end of the ‘boo boys’ this season. Young has had a mixed career at United. He started well during the 11/12 campaign but his reputation has since diminished, partly due to the the diving row, but mostly due to a number of poor performances. The winger struggled with fitness last season and has not kicked on during the current campaign. He has scored a couple of decent goals recently, however the question has to be asked…is Ashley Young good enough for Manchester United? The inability to make the correct decision going forward with the constant lack of quality crosses or passes, the unwillingness to track back and skills similar to Tom Daley in the freestyle diving department all point to only one answer. However unless United sign a winger in January it would seem unlikely that Young will leave this time round.

Likelihood of leaving 7/10

Wilfred Zaha – Fergies final signing and an obvious talent, he has found himself out of favour under Moyes. For whatever reason that is (the daughter or ability) Zaha is at a stage in his career where he needs to be playing regular football in order to grow into the player he promises to be. Apart from a solitary substitute appearance this season, Zaha has had no playing time. From various tweets from Wilfred to mumblings in the United camp, something clearly isn’t right in the Zaha – Moyes relationship. Will he be sold? Probably not, a loan move seems the more likely, however he needs to step up to the plate, and fast if he is to keep his already withering reputation up to scratch.

Likelihood of leaving 9/10 (loan)

Shinji Kagawa – He came to United with a huge reputation. Player of the year for Dortmund the season he left, but he has since struggled to hold down a regular first team place at OT. However when Moyes has given Kagawa the chance he has failed to show why he is so highly rated in Germany. Granted he has been used out of position wide on the left for the most part, but even when he has been allowed to play in his favoured position he has failed to deliver. In my opinion he should be given a little more time, but Moyes’s patience may be getting thin, and sooner or later he will have a decision to make. I just hope Shinji starts to show why Fergie signed him. He’s an obvious talent but needs to produce some performances and fast before Moyes is forced to show his hand.

Likelihood of leaving 6/10

If United do really have ‘no budget restraints’ we should see some new faces in January. We have not in the past been particularly busy in January, and neither has Moyes at Everton, however desperate times call for double measures. Moyes and Woodward et al have their work cut out in January both with in-comings and out-goings if reports are to be believed. Let’s just hope they have learnt lessons from the summer debacle…..maybe the urgent transfer business Ed Woodward left for in June was for a January signing…….maybe.

Let us know your thoughts on who should leave OT and why, either here or on twitter.

@Patrick Hickey