While Manchester United will surely prioritise their midfield this January there is also more than a passing suggestion that David Moyes wants to bring in more cover for his defence.
Patrice Evra is touching 33 and although he’s still performing well for our money, he is sometimes left wanting in the defensive department, as he continues to bowl forward like the gung-ho genius he is.
Quite why Real Madrid would want to get rid of such a brilliant player is beyond us. Nevertheless rumours persist that the Portuguese full-back Fabio Coentrao will leave the club in the January window.
Madrid don’t exactly have what you would call a watertight defence themselves and perhaps Coentrao is a little too buccaneering for a defender – in a team jam packed full of buccaneers.
He looks like a tailor-made replacement for Evra and, at just 25, he has years left in the tank. Real Madrid seemed prepared to do a loan deal for the player in the summer but couldn’t sign a replacement in time.
SkyBet have Manchester United as favourites for his signature in the winter window at odds of 7/1. If a deal can’t be done for Luke Shaw surely this guy represents the next best option. While Leighton Baines is obviously high quality, at 29, his ship may have sailed on a deal to Manchester United.
Let’s see the guy in action. Manchester United fans, would you take Shaw, Baines or Coentrao, given carte blanche?
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