Manchester United Transfer News: Latest Ilkay Gundogan, Nico Gaitan Rumours

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal can expect a battle to sign Borussia Dortmund's Ilkay Gundogan after BVB chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke announced the midfielder will leave the Westfalenstadion this summer.

Watzke revealed that many clubs are interested in acquiring Gundogan's services, as Sport Bild reported (h/t Jonathan Green of the Daily Star):

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Gundogan will be leaving Borussia Dortmund this summer, that is a fact. I am very confident we will see various clubs coming in for him. It has not been our intention to see him leaving. It was his ambition to move clubs (this summer). Therefore we agreed. We will sell him and modify our general future plans (in midfield) due to this!

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Green's article suggests Arsenal, Barcelona and Bayern Munich are also eyeing the German up. Van Gaal has confirmed he needs "two players in every position" to be successful at Old Trafford, according to David Anderson of the Mirror, with many expecting Gundogan to offer an alternative option to controlling midfielder Michael Carrick. 

Gundogan is blessed with quality passing and technical skills. He is more mobile and likely to break forward than Carrick, but he is well-versed in fulfilling multiple roles at the top level. Gundogan was a key player along Dortmund's route to the 2013 Champions League final, in which he netted the side's equaliser in the 2-1 defeat to Bayern.

Sport Witness tweeted further speculation on Gundogan:

It's likely Van Gaal will be exploring multiple options this summer. Intense reports suggesting United have confirmed a deal to sign Benfica winger Nicolas Gaitan appeared on Wednesday, per Portuguese newspaper A Bola (h/t Ben Jefferson of the Express).

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Jefferson's article suggests a £21 million deal has been put in place and will be announced after the Portuguese Cup final on Friday. However, Rob Dawson of the Manchester Evening News—a publication well connected to United—believes Van Gaal isn't looking to sign the Argentinian:

Gaitan has regularly been linked with a Red Devils switch since Sir Alex Ferguson's days in charge, as noted by Sport Witness:

Football writer Peter Hall joked about the reoccurring story:

Tancredi Palmeri of beIN Sports offered his knowledge on three potential United transfers:

Francisco Seco/Associated Press

Gaitan scored four goals in 27 matches during the recent Primeira Liga season, per Soccerway. He is a versatile worker, someone who can be deployed on either flank or through the middle, but it's difficult to suggest he represents an essential purchase.

Van Gaal already struggles to give Juan Mata, Angel Di Maria and Adnan Januzaj consistent opportunities in their favoured roles across similar positions, and that's before Memphis Depay arrives from PSV Eindhoven. With so many other areas needing to be filled, Gaitan would represent a waste of money for the Old Trafford club.

B/R UK's Alex Dimond recently discussed which United players will make way for new stars:

While Gundogan and Gaitan offer quality, only the former can be considered a top-class signing for United at the current time. He has the potential to solve the problem created when Carrick is injured—a regular occurrence during the 2014-15 campaign—but is also likely to become a first-team star in his own right if he moves to England.

Gaitan's story seems destined to pass once more without a deal being established, only to return some time in the future.