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Old 09-05-2007, 03:10 PM
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Talking Re: Manchester United's Headliners, Articles and Rumours

Where the big four will look to spend;Football;Window watch
Oliver Kay, Matt Hughes

* MANCHESTER UNITED

What they want

Owen Hargreaves and perhaps two or three others (Oliver Kay writes). Hargreaves has been the priority since last summer and the spineless nature of their defeat by AC Milan in the Champions League semi-final has only increased Sir Alex Ferguson's desire to sign the tough-tackling midfield player, with talks resuming with Bayern Munich this week. Ideally, Ferguson also wants a top-class centre forward, a young full back or two and a left winger who can eventually replace Ryan Giggs.

What they need

To strengthen the weak (or weakening) links in their squad. Most obviously a destructive midfield player in the Hargreaves mould and a centre forward to ease the goalscoring burden on Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. Ferguson, though, is equally aware that time may soon start catching up on Gary Neville, Paul Scholes and Giggs. Neville's contribution over the past two seasons has been hampered by injury, which may be one reason why rumours persist of a bid for Micah Richards, of Manchester City.

Targets

Whether realistic or not, Dimitar Berbatov is attracting covetous glances after an impressive season with Tottenham Hotspur, putting him ahead of Fernando Torres (Atletico Madrid), Klaas Jan Huntelaar (Ajax) and Michael Owen on Ferguson's wanted list. Nani, Ronaldo's successor at Sporting Lisbon, is a contender for the left-wing berth. Gareth Bale, Southampton's young left back, is a target, but not a priority.

Budget

Only the Glazers can answer that. The Americans allow for a net annual transfer budget of Pounds 25 million, but Ferguson has not got close to that over the past two summers, never mind seeing the extra Pounds 25 million reserved for a "superstar" signing. After a season that may prove to be the most successful in the club's history in financial terms, will they give Ferguson Pounds 50 million-plus or will they look only to reduce their interest payments?

Departures

Only months after signing a new long-term contract, Louis Saha's relationship with Ferguson is suffering, with the France forward's mental (as much as physical) fragility infuriating the manager in recent weeks. Gabriel Heinze or Mikael Silvestre may also be allowed to leave. Youngsters such as Phil Bardsley and Chris Eagles may be sold with a view to creating opportunities for even younger players, such as Jonny Evans, Craig Cathcart and Darron Gibson.