Manchester United Transfers: Kevin Strootman In, Juan Mata Out?

Manchester United’s recent splurge on players is set to continue in the next transfer window as Louis Van Gaal looks to completely revamp the squad he inherited from David Moyes.

The Dutch coach has already spent close to $200 million on the likes of Luke Shaw, Ander Herrera, Daley Blind, Angel Di Maria, Radamel Falcao and Marcos Rojo as he looks to turn United into genuine title contenders once again.

When the summer transfer closed at the beginning of September, many skeptics declared that Van Gaal still hadn’t addressed a number of positions where United had been found lacking over the last few seasons – mainly in central defence and midfield.

However, it seems as though Van Gaal is fully aware of this situation, and he is now lining up further potential transfers to get the squad that he desires.

Speculation suggests that United’s next target will be Kevin Strootman. When he was the manager of the Dutch national side, Van Gaal made the Roma midfielder his temporary captain, and many experts believe that if he hadn’t been injured over the last few months, United would have tried to buy him this summer.

Strootman is set to overcome the knee injury that has stopped him from playing in the next couple of weeks, and when the January transfer window opens, United are likely to test the resolve of Roma by putting in a bid. The Italian club have insisted that they won’t sell Strootman, but if United put in an outrageous bid in an attempt to land their man, then they could easily be swayed.

At a press conference on Thursday though, Roma’s sporting director, Walter Sabatini, insisted that Strootman will still be at the club come the end of the season.

“‘We’re extremely determined to keep him. He is a very important player for us and when he returns I’m sure we’ll see him back to his best. He’s a problem for other clubs because he’s not their player — he belongs to us. I can’t tell you how much he’s worth because he’s not for sale and you only give players valuations once they’re on the market. He’s an incredible player for us, but you never know in football. I’m sure that he’ll get some offers, but we will do everything in our power to hold on to him.”

United have also be linked to Juventus’ Arturo Vidal, and now various media outlets have concluded that Juan Mata, who United bought for over $50 million last January, will be the player sold to make way for these transfers.

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