With the January transfer-window closing tomorrow night, it’s worth looking at the coming’s and going’s that have gone on at Old Trafford so far this window.
As you may well know aside from re-signing Paul Scholes on as a player, Manchester Untied have signed nobody. Not Wesley Sneijder who has been linked with the club on/off for the last two years or anyone else for that matter.
The exit door has been in order with Darron Gibson, Danny Drinkwater and most recently Mame Diouf all moving on to pastures new.
Gibson who was in need of a fresh start after seeing his career stall at United over the last year has certainly got a chance to prove to his doubters (many of them United fans) that he can cut it full-time in the Premier League midfield.
His move to Everton will do him the world of good and he could potentially form an excellent midfield alongside Seamus Coleman, Tim Cahill, Jack Rodwell and Ross Barkley that would excite crowds and be efficient at the same time.
Drinkwater was unfortunate due to the competition at the club that he was never able to make a first team appearance but he looks to be a good player who after impressing on loan at Barnsley in the Championship will do well at Leicester City.
Nigel Pearson is a good young manager who after rejoining the Foxes from Hull City will be looking to win promotion within the next 18 months. Leicester have a good squad and Drinkwater can develop strongly there as a key member of a potential promotion-winning squad.
Senegalese forward Diouf in all honesty was never going to become anything but a sixth-choice striker at the club and should have left the club in the summer. He just wasn’t good enough and his move to German side Hannover is an interesting one.
Despite only scoring 6 goals last season out on loan at Blackburn Rovers, Diouf will be a good option for Hannover as his pace and finishing is of a decent level. The German Club will be hoping that the striker can regain his form that he had for Molde, chipping in with goals
As ever it’s worth noting that forwards Federico Macheda, John Cofie and Joshua King have gone out on loan deals. The inexperienced duo Cofie and King (who spent the first half of the seaosn on loan with Borussia Monchengladbach) have joined Royal Antwerp and Hull City till the end of the season.
Macheda has of course gone out to QPR and now under Mark Hughes, it is a massive opportunity for him to do a ‘Danny Welbeck/Tom Cleverley’ and go out, gain experience, impress and come back to Untied a better player ahead of the 2012/13 season.
Some fans have suggested that the Italian’s winner on debut against Aston Villa has cursed him to a degree, making it impossible for him to achieve anything as meaningful as that in a Untied shirt ever again. Whether that’s true or not it’s a much-needed chance for him to impress once again.
By Adam Dennehey @ADennehey87
