Manchester United Transfer News: Major January Rumours Circling Louis Van Gaal

Manchester United have joined Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur in the race for Southampton’s midfield dynamo Morgan Schneiderlin according to reports, with Louis van Gaal looking for a long-term replacement for Michael Carrick.

The Red Devils will be willing to pay £27 million for the Frenchman in January, according to Steve Stammers of The Mirror, and the financial muscle possessed by the Old Trafford outfit means they will surely fancy their chances of landing the impressive 25-year-old.

Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe takes a look at the attributes that Schneiderlin could potentially add to United’s midfield:

Football writer Jack Rathborn thinks the Frenchman would be a big upgrade on Van Gaal’s current midfield options:

Indeed, Schneiderlin is enjoying an excellent campaign with the  Saints. His displays at the heart of the midfield have been paramount to their unexpected run to the upper echelons of the league table, and without their midfielder in situ, Southampton haven’t quite looked quite the same. With that in mind, you suspect Ronald Koeman will be desperate to cling onto the player.

Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

But as noted by former United defender Gary Neville, per James Dickenson of the Express, Southampton’s desire to keep the Frenchman at all costs looks set to be tested severely in January:

"

They are going to get absolutely bombarded in January.

Liverpool will look at him, Arsenal will look at him, United are looking at holding midfield players. Tottenham, with [Mauricio] Pochettino (who used to manage Schneiderlin at Southampton.

There's four clubs I've named that all might fancy Schneiderlin. I think he's one of the best performing midfield players in the league.

"

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

The player would be a fine addition for United, though, and his array of desirable qualities would make him and excellent foil for the likes of Angel Di Maria, Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata in the Red Devils midfield. If the Red Devils’ interest is a genuine one, then they should be capable of luring Schneiderlin to the North-West of England at the expense of the aforementioned London duo.

Jon Super/Associated Press

One player that may be a little more difficult to bring to Manchester is Bayern Munich’s Arjen Robben. But according to the Star on Sunday (h/t 101 Great Goals), the German champions remain concerned about lingering interest from the Red Devils and will offer the Dutchman a second new deal in the space of a year.

Here’s a look at why Robben is revered among the world’s top players:

Van Gaal brought the very best out of the Dutch forward during the World Cup, as Robben turned in some scintillating displays to haul the Netherlands to an eventual third-place finish in the Brazil finals. With that in mind, the prospect of the duo linking up in the Premier League is a tantalising one.

Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Indeed, the former Chelsea and Real Madrid man seems to be improving his game season after season; Bayern Munich sporting director Matthias Sammer recently paid tribute to the manner in which Robben and his team-mate Franck Ribery have preserved such a high level for so long:

United shouldn’t pursue this deal with any kind of endeavour, though. Robben may have gotten better and better with age, but he’s a player that would cost a massive amount of money to prise away from the Allianz Arena and, at 30 years old, that kind of cash should be invested in other areas of the squad, like players in the mould of Schneiderlin.

Robben seems settled at Bayern and Pep Guardiola is seemingly wholly intent on keeping the Dutchman on board. The German champions have settled into a devastating groove this season under the tutelage of the former Barcelona boss and Robben will surely want to reap the rewards of that come the end of the campaign.