Ryan Shawcross Is Not the Answer to Manchester United's Problems at Centre-Back

If Ryan Shawcross was hoping to benefit from Manchester United's problems at centre-back and earn a move back to Old Trafford, then Ed Woodward's comments to investors last month won't have been particularly welcome.

Asked whether United had plans to spend more money in the January transfer window, Woodward's answer was straight to the point:

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We're not looking to enter the market for short-term fixes. However, we have targets that we are looking at for next summer and should any of those become available in January, which is rare, we will consider acting.

But in terms of expectations we all need to recognise that's a low probability.

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The message from United's executive vice-chairman was clear. The rebuild at Old Trafford is not yet complete. But the club won't be rushed into panic buys in January, never mind how many injuries they suffer at centre-half or in midfield.

Shawcross is an accomplished Premier League defender and a one-time England international. Tall and physical, there are few strikers in the league who like tussling with the United academy graduate.

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But for United, signing the 27-year-old would represent one of Woodward's "short-term fixes." Woodward's remarks in a conference call with investors were widely seen as a knock-down to rumours that Louis van Gaal might be interested in signing Ron Vlaar from Aston Villa.

Vlaar had a successful World Cup under Van Gaal with the Netherlands and would, at the very least, add numbers to an area of United's squad that has already suffered injuries to Jonny Evans, Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Marcos Rojo and Paddy McNair this season.

But at 29 years old, Vlaar isn't a long-term solution to Van Gaal's problems at the back. And neither is Shawcross.

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That's not to diminish their talents. They are Premier League players for a reason. Shawcross is on the fringes of Roy Hodgson's England squad. Vlaar was part of the team that finished third at the World Cup in Brazil.

But United have ambitions to win trophies at the highest level. Van Gaal's task isn't just to get them back into the Champions League. Ultimately, he's been asked to build a squad capable of winning it, just like Sir Alex Ferguson did. 

It's the reason he's been linked with some of the best centre-halves in the world. Unfortunately for them, that group doesn't include Shawcross or Vlaar.