If Man Utd had ‘Arab money’…?

Posted on July 3, 2012 by Abdul Khaled

It’s no secret that Manchester United despite being one of the biggest clubs in world football are finding it more and more tough to compete with the emerging influence of foreign money in the game.

The likes of Manchester City, Chelsea, Real Madrid and Barcelona seem to be on another planet to United when it comes to bidding for players. Fergie has already missed out on top targets Eden Hazard and Jordi Alba and now faces a struggle to secure the signing of Luka Modric from Tottenham, with increased interest from Real Madrid, Chelsea and PSG, all of whom can blow Man Utd out the water in a bidding war.

So what would happen if United were to be taken over by an Arab Sheik or a Russian billionaire this summer? Would they finally be able to stack up the cash to secure Luka Modric? Would they be able to tempt Gareth Bale away from White Hart Lane in a double swoop? What about the elusive defensive midfielder they have been after?

They have been linked with a move for Athletico Bilbao’s Javi Martinez but he is rumoured to be worth in excess of £30 million, something that United simply don’t have the luxury of spending right now, but an investment could make this possible. James Rodriguez is another player strongly linked with a move to Old Trafford this summer but a stumbling block seems to be the £40million release clause in his contract. The Porto winger is a very exciting prospect indeed but once again lack of funds seems to threaten this deal.

So this is what a United team would look like if they had a sudden influx of cash this summer:

De Gea

Ferdinand    Vidic

Valencia                                                                                                                            Bale

                                                             Martinez       Modric

Nani                                                                                                                            Rodriguez

Kagawa

Rooney

NB: Selection based on players strongly linked with United this summer, their intention of moving and the clubs willingness to sell, thus the likes of Ronaldo, Messi or Iniesta are not included.

So what do you guys think? Do you agree with my selection? Maybe you think i’m a bit insane for having 4 wingers in the team (5 if you count Kagawa). Is Rodriguez really worth all that money? Is Modric worth all that hype? Or can Javi Martinez be the answer to United’s midfield woes?

Leave your comments and suggestions below on how your team would line up if they had unlimited cash to spend.