Manchester United: Fabio Coentrao In, Patrice Evra Out?

Manchester United seems to be running high on the road to glory this year till now. Though the embarrassing Carling Cup defeat to West Ham crashed the chances of a silverware to home this season, but still being the leaders of the Premier League and remaining undefeated, gives the Red Devils the edge over the other players.

Apart from this, the top notch clubs like Chelsea (the biggest competitor for United in recent times) is running a pathetic show in EPL which again makes roads easier for United. Though Didier Drogba has said that he will be the Top Drog again, still, a lot of difference remains in saying and scoring.

But what makes matters more interesting is the incoming transfer season. Sir Alex Ferguson has made it quite clear to the press several times that he is not going to spend big in the winter window. However, it seems according to the recent reports that a transfer for the United left back Patrice Evra is already on the cards.

Jose Mourinho of Real Madrid tried to address his left back problems with an offer to land Ashley Cole from Chelsea last summer, but Cole stayed put in Stamford Bridge and continued with his string of good performances. However, Mourinho's problem has not been solved, and now, he turns to United's Evra to become the key to the problem. 

Does United have a cover for Evra? Yes, in the form of Fabio D Silva, the brother of Rafael, though Fabio has not been as impressive as his twin. With substitute covers like Wes Brown heading towards a possible exit to his career, United may think of covering the Evra vacuum with another player. And for that, funds will be provided from the Evra sale to Real giants.

How good will Coentrao be for United? Well, he has shown some skills in the World Cup 2010, and for that, everyone still remembers him. The Portugal left back who currently plays for Benfica has an ability to play both as a left back and as a winger. So when Ryan Giggs is absent, we can have a winger along the left too. 

He can provide adequate cover along the pitch, has high energy quotient, dribbles well and is also a good tackler of the ball. In a nutshell, a player like Coentrao can be an asset to any club.

However, the 22-year-old star will not come cheap for United. Already having a long contract with his present club, Coentrao will not come under the range of £15m. Football agent Jorge Mendes is reported to supervise the deal from Benfica to Old Trafford, who previously supervised the double deal of Nani and Anderson to United from Portugal.

On the other hand, Patrice Evra won't come cheap though for Mourinho and family.

With less than a month to go in the transfer window, United can bring in talents like Coentrao and add the extra boost needed to win the EPL this season.