The World Cup must be grabbing all the headlines, but the club managers are quietly planning out their transfers for the upcoming season and some of them have already joined the clubs, who would be officially joining the team when the month starts to the new season. Soccersouls presents the best XI of the transfer targets that have been rumoured and reported by sources such as Mirror, Express and The Independent.
Goalkeeper: Guillermo Ochoa to Arsenal (Source: Mirror)
The Mexican goalkeeper is one of the most sought after goalkeepers by Premier League clubs as even Liverpool want him in their squad. Ochoa has been in brilliant form in the World Cup and one of his saves, against Brazil has been compared to Gordon Banks’ legendary save that denied Pele’s header, when the Mexican saved Neymar’s header, who ironically is termed as the next Pele. Ochoa is a free agent and Arsenal can offer him a better role and are leading the race according to latest rumours reported by Mirror.
Left Back: Filipe Luis to Chelsea (Source: Various)
Filipe Luis has been in Chelsea’s radar for a long time as Mourinho seems set to replace the departing Ashley Cole. Various sources such as Mirror, Express, The Independent, The Telegraph etc. have reported about Chelsea’s interest in the Atletico Madrid player, who was surprisingly excluded from the Brazil squad that was selected for the World Cup. Luis is a good all round left back who fits in the philosophy of manager Jose Mourinho and can offer both attacking and defensive qualities for the team.
Centre Back: Thomas Vermaelen to Man Utd (Source: Various)
Thomas Vermaelen is heavily courted by Manchester United after their Captain Nemanja Vidic decided to move on to Inter Milan. The news has been reported by reputed sources such as Mirror and Express to name a couple, and has been quite strong and believable considering the pedigree of the Arsenal Captain and his relative relegation to the bench suiting Man Utd’s cause as they can easily lure him to the club. As reported by the Dailymail, Vermaelen is subject to a £11m move once he is done with Belgium’s World Cup Campaign.
As we have discussed earlier, Vermaelen fits the bill perfectly at Old Trafford. He has the experience of playing in the league, coupled with his versatility of playing at left back, which van Gaal will utilize to the maximum.
Centre Back: Stefan de Vrij (Source: The Independent)
The Dutch Centre Back is impressing the European clubs with his impressive performances in the World Cup and it looks as if manager Louis Van Gaal is set to bring him to Manchester United, and have a Dutch force in the club. The Independent recently reported about the interest and it makes perfect sense as Man Utd are severely depleted at the back after the departure of Vidic and Ferdinand, whereas de Vrij already knows the manager and his style.
Right Back: Bacary Sagna to Manchester City (Done Deal)
Once deemed as the best Right Back in the league by his former manager Arsene Wenger, Sagna completed a shock move to Manchester City last week breaking a lot of Arsenal fans’ hearts. Sagna adds a lot of depth and experience to the Manchester City squad, which seems to be over dependent on Zabaleta in the Right Back position. Last season saw the Champions use young and inexperienced central defender Dedryck Boyata as a Right Back. This season, they won’t have that problem.
With Sagna and Zabaleta, arguably the two best right backs in the league, Manuel Pellegrini wouldn’t have the care in the world to think further regarding his back four. Sagna as evident to the Premier League fans has the ability to play at left-back and at centre back if required.