Manchester United 2010/2011 preview

Sir Alex Ferguson is going into the 2010-2011 premier league season with a relatively unchanged squad. Javier Hernandez is the most notable addition to The Red Devils squad, the 22 year olds arrival could ultimately spell the end of Dimitar Berbatovs lacklustre career at Old Trafford. With a mixture of experience and youth, United boast a well balanced squad. The problem lies in surrounded by aging players with undeveloped talent. The likes of Darren Fletcher (26), Wayne Rooney (24), Patrice Evra(29), and Nani(23) are players that they can rely on to perform in the big games, united will struggle against the top 7 clubs if any of those players were absent. At this point in their careers, Ryan Giggs(36), Paul Scholes(35), and Gary Neville (35) should be relegated to a substitute role to reduce dependence on relatively tired legs, although still productive they run the risk of over exhausting them. Darren Gibson (22), Gabriel Obertan (21), Anderson (22) are players that Ferguson has to trust if the united are to sustain a strong challenge to regain the title. If players like Park Ji Sung (29), Rio Ferdinand (31) and Owen Hargreaves (29) can stay fit for most of the season, the premiership will likely end up back in Manchester.

One or two more signings could propel The Red Devils back to the level they where during their Cristiano Ronaldo era. Antonio Valencia has displayed one dimension to his game making him predictable (taking the ball to the goal line and crossing), they lack the creativity on the wing that made them one of the most feared teams in Europe. I ask where the Manchester United scouts were last year when searching for a Cristiano Ronaldo replacement, his departure certainly did not come as a surprise so they must have had at least a year to search. Mesut Ozil would have been the perfect replacement; his creativity during the world cup finals in South Africa was a breath of fresh air.

Squad Additions: Javier Hernandez , Chris Smalling, Bebe(£7M) (Vitoria de Guimaraes)

Possible Additions: Mesut Ozil

Recommended Additions: Mesut Ozil, Luka Modric, Karim Benzema.

By Babatumi Sodade