Reports from England have it that Manchester United aim to complete their long-drawn squad overhaul across the next two transfer windows by having two quality players available for each position at the start of next season, the Manchester Evening News reports. United are still in the market for a ready-made winger, a centre-back, a right-back and a defensive midfielder but the expectation is there will be no incomings in the January window.
In a related development, Arsenal’s sporting director Edu has confirmed the club will continue to look for a creative midfielder after missing out on Dominik Szobsolai. The Hungary starlet has decided to join RB Leipzig in the January transfer window but ex-Gunners midfielder Edu says “it’s quite clear what we need”.
He told a fans forum on Tuesday night: “We need a player with creativity in the middle. We don’t have that in the squad right now.” Sky Sports News reported last week that young defender William Saliba could also been loaned out in the January window – and Edu has suggested they still have hope he can make it in the first-team long-term.
“Maybe he needs a little more time,” Edu said. “He’s a bright talent. We need to talk with him and Mikel to plan for next year.” Edu addressed a number of issues from disgruntled Arsenal fans at the forum, with the team having slumped to 15th in the table following a home defeat to Burnley last time out, including reports of a rift between manager Mikel Arteta and the players.
“Every single club has problems,” Edu said. “The stories about a split between the players and Arteta are not true. Stories about players not believing and not trusting Mikel are not true.”
