Manchester United target Kevin Strootman has told his club AS Roma that he wants to leave. According to Goal, Strootman could move as soon as January as he wants to negotiate with Manchester United over a potential switch to Old Trafford.
The Dutch midfielder was linked with Manchester United as soon as Louis Van Gaal took over as the manager, and since then, the transfer saga has rolled on and on despite Strootman being injured. He joined Roma from PSV Eindhoven in 2013 for a fee of £14.5m and signed a 5-year contract. His reported wages are close to £25,000-a-week which could be trebled if he joins Manchester United.
Van Gaal is desperately looking to sign a defensive midfielder in order to plug the gap of conceding goals. His defense has been poor so far and the lack of a combative defensive midfielder has added to the woes. The addition of Daley Blind has somewhat improved the situation, but if they want to make the top 4 then a quality player in that position is required.
United have also been linked with Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira whose contract expires next summer. However, the German’s injury record is far more worse that Strootman, which could go against him.
Since joining Roma in 2013, the 24-year old has made 29 appearances for the club. Despite playing a defensive role, he got on the scoresheet 6 times on those games. Strootman suffered from a Cruciate Ligament injury in March and hasn’t made a single appearance since then. He has been undergoing rigorous development training since then and is expected to return in action in mid November.
If he does move to United, then he’ll be the player that the red half of Manchester have missed ever since the retirement of Paul Scholes. He not only has all the skills to succeed in the Premier League, but also has the advantage of age on his side.