Manchester United: Could Ashley Young Replace Paul Scholes in Midfield?

Most Manchester United fans will agree that, up till now, Manchester United have had a successful summer.

They've succeeded in replacing Edwin van der Sar with one of the most promising goalkeepers on the planet in David de Gea, and have brought in the young and talented Phil Jones, who along with Chris Smalling will likely be part of Manchester United's center back pairing of the future.

Ashley Young has arguably been the most impressive signing of Manchester United's summer though. Unlike the other two signings, Young is in his prime, proven in the Premier League and ready to make an immediate impact on the pitch.

Yet, for some time now, Manchester United fans have been calling for the club to sign a creative midfielder to replace the hole left in midfield by Paul Scholes.

First, there was Samir Nasri, but after Manchester United's offer of £20 million was rejected for the playmaker, Sir Alex Ferguson ruled out any possibility of Samir Nasri joining Manchester United this summer.

Then there was, and according to some reports, still is Wesley Sneijder, but Ferguson's latest comments on the subject are that the midfielder will not be easy to sign, and is best forgotten about.

So where do Sir Alex and Manchester United go from here? Nowhere, according to Ferguson:

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"I think we'll be starting the season with the players I have," Ferguson said. "And I'm satisfied with that. There's nothing on the horizon at the moment, I can assure you."

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But before Manchester United fans begin to complain and moan about Manchester United's reluctance to spend big in the transfer market, they should take a second look at their squad, and in particular one man: Ashley Young.

To most England fans and general English Premier League fans, Ashley Young is known to be a solid winger who can deliver good crosses and score on occasion when cutting in from the wings, similar to how Nani scores the majority of his goals.

What many people do not know however, is that Ashley Young is an excellent attacking midfielder. Indeed, in his final season at Aston Villa, this is the role Ashley Young operated in, and in this role, Young managed to have a very productive season, tallying nine goals and 12 assists in all competitions.

Looking at Manchester United's squad, they have no real need for another winger. Antonio Valencia, Nani, Ji-Sung Park and Ryan Giggs are all solid crossers of the ball, and all have the ability to create and score goals down the flanks. Gabriel Obertan, if he ever matures as a player and finds consistency in his game, will also be another option for Manchester United on the wings.

Thus, Ashley Young's services are better used in the middle of midfield. Admittedly, Ashley Young isn't the tenacious tough tackler that Paul Scholes was, but as Sir Alex Ferguson has already said, there will not be another Paul Scholes, and Manchester United and Sir Alex have never set out to find someone who's game most closely resembles Scholes', but rather a player with vision who can add more bite and creativity to Manchester United's starting lineup.

Ashley Young is that player. He has consistently been amongst the the assist leaders in the league, knows how to score consistently, and is as creative as they come.

Although Young has been mostly confined to the wings in preseason play thus far, there is no telling what Sir Alex Ferguson has planned for when the season actually starts. In midfield, his only options are Anderson, Darren Fletcher (who is currently missing the US tour due to a virus), Michael Carrick and Giggs, of which the only player with any true and real creativity is Giggs.

As good as Giggs is, it's hard to imagine Ferguson relying on him to be the creative spark for the team in the center of midfield on a regular basis at the age of 37. Giggs remains a great player, but he is no longer world class, and the new role of attacking playmaker and creator is not a role he can or should step into at this stage of his career.

Maybe Ferguson has already decided that Young will be Scholes' direct replacement by giving him the No. 18 shirt Scholes used to wear. He pulled a similar trick when Cristiano Ronaldo moved to Manchester United by giving him David Beckham's jersey, and the move paid off handsomely.

Regardless of what Ferguson is presently thinking though, it appears crystal clear that, should no other world class playmaker be brought in by Manchester United, Ashley Young would be an excellent candidate for the position. 

All that remains to be seen is if Sir Alex Ferguson will give Young the opportunity to prove himself in that role, or keep him on the wings and deprive himself of a potentially great attacking midfielder for many years to come at Manchester United.