5 Likely Replacements for Nemanja Vidic

Replacing a player like Nemanja Vidic is no easy undertaking. Alongside former dutch international Jaap Stam, Vidic represents one of the finest two Centre defender to play in the Ferguson era. The Serbian defence stalwart has seen it all at Manchester United winning a host of trophies and rightly after 8 successful years need to move on, age has beckoned on him and he has lost a yard or two.

 Top 5 likely replacements.

Mats Hummels; 25 year old German international from the Westfallenstadion represents Van Gaal major interest in the heart of United’s defence, a seasoned international Champions league finalist and Bundesliga winner. Hummels is considered a very top player in his position and he has shown that over and over again in the course of the past season and the German national team. Getting Borussia Dortmund to do a deal on him might be a hard nut as he’s under contract till 2017. However, if United wants to get this man a deal needs to be done before the commencement of the World cup in Brazil as his central defence partnership with Jerome Boateng might just incite Bayern Munich to get into the mix and if Bayern do not get into the mix, a good show at the world cup may just hike up his price tag further.

Mehdi Benatia; Arguably Roma’s player of the season, the French born Moroccan international has finally emerged as one of the best defenders in the world, with career experience of the French and now Italian league Benatia has everything United next defence stalwart - big, strong and quick. An European style player but with African grit, though at 27 years he might not represent the far future United requires but he can deliver in the short term under Van Gaal who has just 3 seasons to spend with United assuming his contract will not be renewed thats ). And we also believe he won’t need a lot of convincing to move camp to Old Trafford.

Ezequiel Garay; Argentine Garay was purported to be highly regarded by former United manager David Moyes. After a highly successful league winning season with Benfica, Garay has become the toast of a number of clubs. Putting in two excellent performances in two Europa league finals and not winning might just be the best scenario to snatch this Argentine stallion. But Like Mehdi at 27 he has not more than 5 years or 6 at most at that level of athleticism in him. Having Garay line up with a younger Hummels would be a dream pair.

 Bruno Martins Indi; The little known Dutch international is highly regarded by United’s manager who of course is the Oranje manager to the world cup. At 22 years he represents a bargain and long term player that United can get up 6 to 7 seasons from and still get a salvage value on him. If Oranje do well at the world cup this man’s value might hit the roof.

Eliaquim Mangala;   The French international is the one player United might find difficult to attract, with United’s neighbour City and Chelsea having already shown interest, signing the high rated Frenchman will not be an easy task for United especially as we will not be in Europe next season. Mangala alongside Indi are the new generation central defenders, a replica of Marcel Desaily in style but still have brushing up to reproduce the Desaily finesse. 22 years and plays for FC Porto

My Expectation From Louis Van Gaal In His First Season

One time champions league winner, 3 times finalist, league winner in Holland (Ajax and AZ Akmaar), Spain (Barcelona) and Germany (Bayern Munich) that is a short brief of some of the major achievements of  the man Louis Van Gaal, the man saddled with the responsibility of taking United back to the top.

United poor seventh place finish in the 2013/14 EPL  season and absence from Europe next season necessitated United management  to go outside of the U.K ( for the first time) to hire an experienced top class man. The question that begs is what can he do in his first season to bring United back unto their glorious path?

The rebuilding process must begin in earnest with expected players’ exodus that has seen Giggs retire, Vidic to Inter, Ferdinand out of contract and possibly transfer of two of the following Cleverly, Young, Fellaini, Valencia and perhaps Nani.  Van Gaal will be expected in his first season to bring in players across every area of the team, 2 central defenders, 2 midfielders and at least one attacker cum striker. The mission will be to get the team to play as a unit, qualify for Europe and compete for the 3 local titles and possibly winning one. Whilst Van Gaal on paper looks the perfect fit for the job, it won’t be an easy task convincing top quality players to transfer to a non Europe playing team and that is one of the area the charm and status of both club and manager comes to play. Man Utd is arguable the biggest club in the world , Van Gaal represent the face of Europe top managers and together with  the right  paycheque  that problem could be easily over come.

As learnt from the Liverpool experience, being away for two long as a title contender only makes the job more difficult, Van Gaal is expected to go for it even in his very first season. This might represent perhaps his toughest assignment till date but the man has shown a capability of building great side on the strength of young players as seen in his past. And truly there are no much better options in Europe that can be trusted with this task as at now other than Van Gaal.

Manchester United Fans Must Give Louis van Gaal Time

Having finished seventh on the table in the just concluded season, Manchester United fans will no doubt want to return to winning ways once again. Manchester United fans are already used to winning trophies, but they must give new manager van Gaal time to rebuild the team.

As a Manchester United fan, one of the most painful experiences I went through last season was watching teams like City and Liverpool beat us at Old Trafford. Those defeats home and away were low moments in my many years of supporting the team, and that was why I celebrated the sacking of David Moyes. To me, it is not time to drop ones' season ticket, I am prepared to renew my own season ticket and I advise all United fans that will keep the faith toBuy tickets to see Manchester United here. Our money can only help the club more.

Now that a new manager has been appointed in the person of current Dutch national team boss Louis van Gaal, it is important that he be given time to rebuild the team. Personally, I think the manager should be given healthy transfer funds to buy key players. As we saw in the case of Tottenham Hotspurs last season, new signings take time to blend. AVB was given the boot midway into the season because his team was doing poorly, but his sacking the change much or did it?

While a lot of fans would argue that Manchester United are different from Tottenham and are used to winning trophies, it is vital to state how important it is to give the new manager time to succeed. Louis van Gaal has one of the best CVs in club football, and should not be pressured. His football philosophy is without doubt one that will benefit the team. He is disciplined, frank, and hardworking, and will need time to instill his footballing philosophy into the team. 

His impressive achievements over the years include winning the Champions League trophy in 1995 after guiding a young team like Ajax to beat AC Milan, winning the Dutch league title with AZ Alkmaar, winning two La Liga titles with Barcelona, and taking Bayern Munich to both the German title and the Champions League Final in 2010.

For van Gaal, it is not a question of experience and pedigree, but rather it is about giving him all the time and support he needs to return the team to where we belong.

Robin Van Persie Warns Teammates Of Louis Van Gaal

Manchester United fans have been warned to be ready for some serious football business as new manager, Louis van Gaal is not one to mess with.

The warning was issued by no other person than former Arsenal striker and captain, Robin van Persie. The former Arsenal man warned that both van Gaal and his backroom staff are ‘continuously on top.’

“The technical staff is continuously on top, not only during training, but also in the hotel. Or if we come together for a discussion.

“It’s a different kind of approach than I was used to from previous coaches. But I like it very much. Very direct, but to get better. And I do not find it tiring, I just get the energy.”

The current Netherlands manager whose appointment as Manchester United manager was confirmed almost a week ago is expected to resume work immediately after the World Cup. His appointment has been hailed by many football enthusiasts who see him as the right man for the job.

However, his managerial style is what will likely give a lot of people thought for concern as players like Rooney and the likes need to sit up if they hope to be in the manager’s good books. To further corroborate what van Persie said about his national team manager, former Ajax player Ronald De Boer had this to say:

"He's very strict," De Boer, who played under Van Gaal for club and country, De Boer told BBC Radio 5 live.

"When I was young, I was scared of him and feared him a bit."

Speaking in the same vein, current Derby manager, Steve McClaren who also worked as a coach in Holland said:

"He is very forthright, he knows what he wants, he knows what he is doing and he is very disciplined."

“You either love him or you hate him in Holland, he is one of those characters, but he is successful, he gets teams winning and he is experienced at that level."

Louis van Gaal is without a doubt one of the best managers in the world. He has an enviable CV, having won the league titles in Germany, Spain, and his home country Netherlands.