Manchester United Transfer News: Mats Hummels Bid Reported, Top January Rumours

Borussia Dortmund's Mats Hummels has been linked with a move to Manchester United for what seems like an eternity, and there has finally been some movement on the matter.

According to Tuttomercatoweb.com's Gianluigi Longari (h/t Phil Shearer of The Peoples Person), the Old Trafford outfit has made a bid for the German international. Louis van Gaal is looking to improve what has been an inconsistent defense:

However, Ben Fairthorne, formerly of CNN and The Sun, suggests a far more likely scenario is a switch for Hummels to Old Trafford in the summer:

Received wisdom when rumours were circulating around Hummels in the summer of 2014 was that his departure from Dortmund was highly unlikely considering the 26-year-old's loyalty to the Bundesliga club.

Football pundit Jan Aage Fjortoft previously ruled out a January move for Hummels, but Dortmund's recent form—which sees them in the relegation zone of the Bundesliga—could potentially see the World Cup winner force a move:

United do need strengthening in the centre of defence. They currently lack experience and poise in that area of the pitch, and Hummels would be a top-class signing, as would Zenit St. Petersburg's Ezequiel Marcelo Garay, per B/R UK's Andy Brassell:

If Hummels is indeed unlikely to be a January signing, Van Gaal may look elsewhere for the moment, and Real Madrid's £20 million man Raphael Varane is reportedly looking for a way out of the Bernabeu, per Jack Wilson in the Daily Star.

The Telegraph has recently reported United's interest in the 21-year-old Frenchman, who rejected a move to Old Trafford back in 2011 to move to Los Blancos instead, per Sky Sports.

But Varane has failed to claim a first-team spot under Carlo Ancelotti—starting just four La Liga games this season, per WhoScored.com—and is now looking for a way out.

Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images

Arguably, Hummels would be the better signing at centre-back for United as Varane lacks experience, but bagging the pair would likely be the ultimate scenario for Van Gaal.

United's Dutch boss also looks set to jettison Javier Hernandez permanently in the summer, with Mark Ogden in The Telegraph reporting Van Gaal's desire to move on the Mexican—currently on a season-long loan at Real—even if a £43.2 million permanent deal for Radamel Falcao does not materialise.

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Chicharito is something of a fan favorite at Old Trafford, performing admirably after signing as a relative unknown in 2010, but he became a fringe figure under David Moyes and is clearly not in Van Gaal's long-term plans.

As Ogden reports, Real have an option to sign Hernandez permanently at the end of his loan spell, but they are unlikely to take it up, and United will need to look for another buyer.

The 26-year-old Hernandez is a high-quality finisher and is likely an attractive prospect to many European clubs, where he should find more starting opportunities than he has at Old Trafford in recent years.

The Red Devils' attacking strength is set with Falcao, Wayne Rooney, Angel Di Maria and the rest, but the defence is still weak, and United would do well to complete the long-rumoured Hummels move as soon as possible.