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The Red Devils have a number of possible additions in their sights as they look to build a squad which can win the Premier League in 2018-19

Having finished 19 points behind neighbours Manchester City in 2017-18, Manchester United headed into the summer knowing that there was plenty of work to be done in the transfer market to mount a serious challenge next season.

They have already added Fred to their midfield supplies and brought in Diogo Dalot as another full-back option, as well as signing Lee Grant as their third-choice goalkeeper, but there are still a number of players in their sights.

Below,  Goal  goes through 10 of the targets they have in their sights, starting with the more serious possibilities and working down to those who are consider back-up possibilities.

Getty Images1Leonardo Bonucci

AC Milan’s financial issues, which have seen them ruled out of the Europa League for the coming season, may well lead to them allowing a couple of major assets to leave. And with a €14m annual salary, Leonardo Bonucci is currently one of the biggest financial liabilities the Rossoneri have.

United have been credited with an interest by some reports in Italy, and Mourinho’s desire to add a centre-back means a move may not be out of the question.

But United’s name may well be being used as leverage for Milan to get a better deal, with PSG among those potentially being enticed to splash out on a man who cost €40m last summer when leaving Juventus for San Siro.

Advertisement2Milan Skriniar

Inter defender Milan Skriniar has caused quite a stir with his performances in Serie A of late, and United are known to be big admirers. The 23-year-old was a stand-out in the Nerazzurri’s run to Champions League qualification in 2017-18 and it prompted United to show a serious interest.

But Skriniar told the Slovakian FA website earlier this summer that his current club had taken a decision out of his hands by rejecting United’s approach. “I’m glad they are interested in me, but Inter decided what they decided so I cannot say anything more about it. However, I am satisfied.”

That would appear to end the story on Skriniar for this summer at least, unless United decide to go for a bank-busting offer rather than seek out a deal with one of their higher priorities.

Getty3Harry Maguire

World Cups are rarely the shop windows they used to be given the vast scale of knowledge of the global club scene these days, but it is fair to say that Maguire’s stock has risen markedly after taking to the international stage with great confidence during England’s run to the semi-final in Russia.

With Leicester City likely to want a huge return on their £17m investment last summer, United would have to part with a sizeable sum for the 25-year-old but Mourinho could be persuaded that he is the best option as he looks to add a centre-half with Premier League experience and a degree of comfort in possession.

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Getty4Ante Rebic

While Croatia team-mate Perisic has been a long-term target, Ante Rebic has been thrust into United’s view following his performances at this summer’s World Cup.

Though the club have watched him develop with Eintracht Frankfurt over the last couple of years, it has been his form with his country over the last month which has had them believing he may be a good fit at Old Trafford.

Mourinho’s insistence that he already has what he needs in attack doesn’t tally with a move for both Perisic and Rebic unless there are to be outgoings too, but United might well decide that the 24-year-old is a worthwhile addition for the longer term regardless of whether he was initially a part of their transfer plan.

After the United States lifted the title in Lyon, Goal picks out the best XI of players from this summer's competition

GettyGK | Sari van Veenendaal

After making two superb and crucial saves in the Netherlands’ 1-0 extra time win over Sweden in the semi-finals, Sari van Veenendaal secured the Golden Glove prize at the Women’s World Cup by making eight in the final against the United States.

Her incredible save percentage of 82.14 from 28 shots faced proved hugely important as the Oranje upset the odds to reach the final, and her saves kept them in that game, too, before the USA emerged 2-0 winners.

The 29-year-old left Arsenal at the end of the season but her superb performances in France will certainly not leave her short of suitors this summer.

AdvertisementRB | Lucy Bronze

Phil Neville has called Lucy Bronze the best player in the world for most of his spell in charge of England, and she showed just why this summer – winning the Silver Ball in the process.

The 27-year-old won 15 of her 17 tackles at the tournament and 17 of her 27 aerial duels, but also proved a huge asset going forward – creating nine chances, providing two assists and scoring once from right-back.

Bronze’s performance against Norway in the quarter-finals was a particular highlight, in which she supplied a contender for goal of the tournament with her thunderous strike from the edge of the box.

GettyCB | Abby Dahlkemper

Abby Dahlkemper was a crucial cog in the American winning machine that charged to World Cup glory this summer, providing the United States with solid, reliable and error-free performances that allowed them to ship just three goals in seven games.

With her centre-back partner Becky Sauerbrunn having a few shaky moments, Dahlkemper proved even more important, particularly in games such as those against France and England when Jill Ellis’ side found themselves under sustained pressure.

Cool under pressure, tactically aware and rarely out-muscled, the 26-year-old had a truly fine tournament.

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GettyCB | Dominique Bloodworth

Many would expect the Netherlands’ attackers to have been the stars of their unlikely run to the final, but their success was more down to grit and teamwork and few embodied that better than Dominique Bloodworth.

The defender excelled at centre-back, winning 10 of her 15 tackles and 10 of her 13 aerial duels while also showing the technical ability that makes her such a fantastic holding midfielder as well.

Her versatility saw her moved to left-back for the final and even that didn’t stop her from putting in a solid display, with the 24-year-old heading to new club Wolfsburg off the back of a stellar tournament.   

International cricket’s future can only be secured by making it the financial pinnacle for players currently torn between Tests and domestic Twenty20 leagues, the Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has declared

Daniel Brettig26-Apr-20165:23

Need for greater financial remuneration in Test cricket?

International cricket’s future can only be secured by making it the financial pinnacle for players currently torn between Tests and domestic Twenty20 leagues, the Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has declared.Having returned from a round of ICC meetings he considered as constructive as any he had witnessed in 15 years as CA’s CEO, Sutherland argued that any changes to the schedule or additions of championships or league formats had to run parallel with extensive work to ensure that the financial rewards for Tests outstripped the cash on offer in T20.Outside of Australia and England, most players can currently earn far more for a few weeks’ work in the IPL or BBL than their contract retainers or match fees to play international matches. This trend was underlined last summer in Australia when the payments for New Zealand and West Indies were lined up against those of the home side. Sutherland said players should not feel they are being shortchanged by putting international cricket first, meaning new ways must be found to pay them more generously for Tests in particular.”I’m genuinely excited about the progress that’s been made and the collective will that appears to be in the room among Full Members to improve the context around international cricket and the quality of international cricket,” he said. “Some of the key things there are about trying to make way to ensure the best players play international cricket, that they’re available and they don’t feel under pressure to go and chase money in T20 leagues.”Part of that is elevating the primacy of all forms of international cricket but particularly Test cricket, and looking to build context. Whether that’s through leagues or championships or whatever it might be, it’s too early to say, but I can honestly say that in terms of ICC meetings I’ve attended and we’ve discussed these sort of matters, these were as a good a meetings as I’ve ever been to.”Another option raised in recent weeks has been the establishment of ironclad windows in the calendar for domestic T20 events, which Sutherland is opposed to. CA have managed to engineer a home summer where the BBL runs parallel to Test matches, and Sutherland said any move towards domestic T20 windows – apart from the unofficial gap that has grown around the IPL – would serve mainly to diminish the international game.”It’s for others to state their position, but my view is that international cricket comes first,” he said. “International cricket must be protected and it should be the form of the game that is the priority for players. I don’t support creating exclusive windows for T20 domestic competitions; there may be an exception for IPL which almost seems to have created its own exclusive window, but to that end irrespective I still maintain the position that international cricket must come first, and there shouldn’t be any exclusive windows for domestic T20 competitions.”Among Sutherland’s priorities while in Dubai was to further prosecute his case for a day-night Test against South Africa in Adelaide next summer. He said discussions with CSA and the South African players’ association had revolved around ensuring South Africa’s players had the maximum possible opportunities to get used to playing with a pink ball under lights before they arrive in Adelaide. The former captain Shaun Pollock has raised the possibility of a day-night Test at home against New Zealand in August, before the Australian tour begins.”I maintain my position that I continue to be optimistic about the Adelaide Test match being played as a day-night Test match,” Sutherland said. “In a timing sense we probably won’t have any firm decisions on that until after the IPL’s over, when their [South Africa’s] players get back home, but certainly constructive discussions and I think things are heading in the right direction.”As we know from last year we’ll see an enormous attendance at a day-night match in Adelaide. It’ll be a bigger crowd than the South African players have ever seen before. To some extent that can add a little bit of extra trepidation when they haven’t played under lights before; hopefully as part of the plan here we’ll provide as much opportunity for them to prepare with pink balls and under lights both back at home and leading into the Test match. It’s a lot about making sure they have a comfortable preparation to get themselves ready for that game.”

Paul Mullin has revealed how Wrexham co-owner Rob McElhenney's generosity played a part in the unbeaten run that helped Wrexham seal promotion.

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McElhenney chartered flight after royal visitPlayers struck air travel dealUnbeaten run ended after coach tripGetty ImagesWHAT HAPPENED?

The club were placed in a tricky situation when a royal visit to the Racecourse Ground delayed their travel plans for their 2022-23 fixture against Eastleigh in Hampshire. Facing a less-than-ideal five-hour coach journey much closer to kick-off time, McElhenney decided to charter a flight. An outcome that delighted the squad.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT PAUL MULLIN SAID

"Thank goodness for Rob McElhenney," Mullin wrote in his autobiography, . "He came up with the perfect answer: we’d shave hours off the day by flying down to Hampshire. A quick thirty minutes on a plane compared to five hours on a bus would make a massive difference to our preparation, not least because it’s obviously not good for elite sportspeople to be sat in one position all that time. The plan paid dividends when we won 2–0. Afterwards, a couple of people were on at me – ‘Ask Rob if we can fly back as well!’ It wasn’t total laziness: we had another game on the Tuesday and flying back would massively aid our recovery. Rob not only said yes but came up with a deal: keep winning and we could fly to all our away games more than two hours away by road. He might not have counted on us then going on that twenty-eight-game unbeaten streak! When finally we were beaten at Halifax, a game we’d travelled to by road, it was all the proof we needed that coach travel was bad news and air transport was the way forward if we were going to fulfil our potential."

Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

With Wrexham entrenched in an epic battle with Notts County for the one automatic promotion available from the National League, every little advantage was vital. During that unbeaten run, trips to Gateshead, Bromley and Dagenham were reduced from arduous bus trips to short flights and undoubtedly kept players fresher over the relentless 46-game schedule.

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WHAT NEXT FOR PAUL MULLIN AND WREXHAM?

With this season's promotion race shaping up to be another nail-biter, it will be intriguing to see if McElhenney gets his players airborne once more. Wrexham are up to second in the League Two standings after 20 games, only five points behind leaders Stockport County.

Liverpool have approached the agent of Xabi Alonso to discuss the prospect of the Bayer Leverkusen boss replacing Jurgen Klopp at Anfield this summer.

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Liverpool looking for Klopp replacementReds have made approach for AlonsoLeverkusen expect coach to snub offerWHAT HAPPENED?

The Reds have made a request to Inaki Ibanez, Alonso's representative, according to The Spanish coach's current side have already been informed of the approach and the top figures at the BayArena are confident the former midfielder will turn down his ex-club in favour of staying at Leverkusen.

Advertisement(C)Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Alonso was appointed Leverkusen head coach in October 2022, when they were second-bottom of the table after eight matches, and guided them to a sixth-place finish in the Bundesliga. This season, they are the shock, unbeaten leaders in the Bundesliga, holding a eight-point advantage over reigning champions Bayern.

DID YOU KNOW?

Liverpool are not the only contenders to lure Alonso away from Leverkusen this summer, as German rivals Bayern have also been linked with a move for their former player as Thomas Tuchel will depart at the end of the season. Leverkusen, however, will hope to hold onto Alonso until the end of his contract, which expires in 2026.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR ALONSO?

Before he considers a possible summer departure from Leverkusen, Alonso will hope his team can boost their hopes of winning their first ever Bundesliga title by beating Koln on Sunday. They will then turn their attention to their Europa League tie against Qarabag.

The New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum is set to launch defamation proceedings against John Parker over a document concerning the way Ross Taylor’s removal as captain was handled

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Apr-2013The New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum is set to launch defamation proceedings against John Parker over a document concerning the way Ross Taylor’s removal as captain was handled. The law firm Chapman Tripp is expected to file proceedings in the High Court in Hamilton next week over the document titled “The Taylor Affair”, which they claim was written by Parker.McCullum said in a statement released by his lawyers that he had “no option but to take legal action”. “Mr Parker’s paper makes some very serious attacks on my integrity, my honesty and my ethics as a professional sportsman,” McCullum said. “I have endeavoured to resolve these issues with Mr Parker but have been unable to do so. He has left me with no choice but to defend myself and my reputation this way.”McCullum said he was not seeking monetary damages but wanted Parker’s “acknowledgment that the claims he makes are completely false”.Mike Hesson, the New Zealand coach, is also believed to be considering legal action against Parker and issued a statement on Friday that said he was aware of McCullum’s comments. “I have similar concerns to him regarding the comments made by John Parker about me,” Hesson said. “I have taken legal advice and the matter is currently being dealt with by my lawyers. I have nothing further to say regarding the matter.”Parker, who once captained New Zealand, has been critical not only of Taylor’s removal as captain but also the wider governance of New Zealand Cricket.

Denesh Ramdin has fractured his right thumb while batting in a warm-up match and will be replaced in the West Indies squad by Carlton Baugh for the first three matches of their ODI series against Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Mar-2012Denesh Ramdin has fractured his right thumb while batting in a warm-up match and will be replaced in the West Indies squad by Carlton Baugh for the first three matches of the ODI series against Australia. Ramdin, who was named vice-captain for the series, will travel back to Trinidad & Tobago and is expected to be out for two weeks, which means he is likely to miss all five matches of the series and perhaps the two Twenty20 internationals too.Baugh will have to leave Jamaica’s match against T & T in the Regional Four-Day competition, in which he had scored a century on the first day, midway, and will be replaced by Horace Miller in the Jamaican line-up. Baugh, who is West Indies’ first-choice keeper in Tests, has not played a limited-overs international since India’s ODI series in the West Indies in June last year.Ramdin replaced Baugh in the West Indies one-day XI after that series, after a year of being ignored. He impressed on the tour of India, scoring a fighting 96 in the fourth ODI, in Indore, but has now had his comeback interrupted by injury.West Indies will name a new vice-captain for the ODI series in the next few days. The squad will travel from Barbados to St Vincent on Monday, where they will play the first ODI against Australia on March 16.Edited by Dustin Silgardo

Title-chasing Middlesex did their promotion cause the world of good by dismissing Kent for 242 on day one of their Division Two match at Canterbury

17-Aug-2011
Scorecard
Title-chasing Middlesex did their promotion cause the world of good by dismissing Kent for 242 on day one of their Division Two match at Canterbury. When bad light ended play early with 18 overs of the day still remaining, the visitors had reached 55 without loss in reply with Scott Newman on 16 and Sam Robson unbeaten with 37.Having elected to bat first, in what transpired to be the brightest conditions of the day, Kent made a watchful start through openers Rob Key and Joe Denly. Against a seaming ball, the pair mustered 24 runs and only four boundaries in the opening hour in the face of a stern examination by Corey Collymore, Tim Murtagh and Steven Crook – the nominated player to stand aside should Steve Finn return from England stand-by on day two.Crook found the outside edge three times only to see the opportunities fall short of the slip cordon, leaving Collymore to make the first breakthrough by having Key (17) caught low at slip by Dawid Malan as the Kent skipper aimed a back-foot force through the offside.Only 10 runs later Sam Northeast (3) nicked another fine delivery from Crook into the gloves of wicketkeeper John Simpson and, without addition to his lunch-time score of 2, Martin van Jaarsveld fell in identical fashion as the Kent innings began to unravel.Having looked sound in reaching his 84-ball half-century, Denly’s two-hour stay ended when Murtagh trapped him leg before prodding forward, bringing together Darren Stevens and Geraint Jones for a bright fifth-wicket riposte. With both right-handers going for their strokes, Kent added 45 in 9.2 overs before Collymore returned to snare Jones lbw on his way to eventual figures of4 for 69.Azhar Mahmood fenced Collymore’s next ball toward mid-on and looked vaguely interested in a single, but Stevens said no and as Mahmood dithered Collymore threw down the striker’s end stumps to run out Mahmood as he lazily tried to dot down his bat.Stevens’ cameo knock for 27 ended when he chopped on against former team-mate Neil Dexter, then Collymore had Adam Ball snaffled at second slip with Kent still 45 short of a batting point. It took a bright stand of 57 for the ninth wicket – the second best of the innings – between Matt Coles (41) and James Tredwell (31) to take Kent through to 200 and their sole batting point.Tredwell’s fun ended when he dragged one from Collymore onto middle stump, then Coles pulled one from Murtagh into the hands of Jamie Dalrymple on the ropes at deep midwicket.

Jimmy Adams’ task is to raise the temperature among Kent supporters. Kent have slumped from title-contenders at the turn of the century to second-bottom of the pile last season: the third-worst finish in their history.

Alex Winter30-Mar-2012When Jimmy Adams arrived in Britain, the country was gripped by a cold snap that brought snow to the garden of England. With the mercury having jumped 15 degrees, Adams declared t-shirt weather for his first day as Kent’s new head coach.His task is to raise the temperature among Kent supporters. Kent have slumped from title-contenders at the turn of the century to second-bottom of the pile last season: the third-worst finish in their history.Charged with reviving one of the most famous counties, Adams is unconcerned about what has gone before. “There is lot of history here,” he said. “But I’m sure every county would gladly roll out the history books. A lot of fantastic players have come through this club; I wouldn’t use that to burn the players.”Adams plays up to all the stereotypical impressions of a laid-back West Indian as he slumps against a wall inside Kent’s indoor school, but it belies a determination to get things done. “I’ve got to get stuck in, nose to the ground,” he said. “There’s a lot of work to be done – in a good sense – we’ll try to construct something here that will hopefully bring us results.”The environment and culture around the squad is something that Adams seems keen on, getting the values and discipline right to be able to get a young squad working for each other. This focus endeared him to Kent chief executive, Jamie Clifford, during a three-month recruitment process to replace Paul Farbrace, who has since moved on to Yorkshire’s coaching staff.”Jimmy is quite big on culture. He’s got a very clear idea about how he wants the cricket part of the club to run which is what we wanted: a clear sense of direction,” Clifford said. “He is coming into this role fresh, he’s never had a county role, so we’ve got the chance to freshen it up. Jimmy stood out from what was a very strong shortlist; there were some guys on there with quite strong coaching pedigree and big names in the world of cricket.”Having survived a thorough recruitment process involving psychometric testing and independent interviewers, Adams has the chance to make his name in coaching with his first major role. He had been technical director for Jamaica, a role Adams describes as “a bit of everything” with all the cricket programmes running through his desk. He thinks that all-encompassing experience will lend itself well to county cricket.”At this stage in my life I’ve mixed it pretty much with every age group over a period of time,” Adams said. “There a lot of talent here but I’m just happy that we have lads that seem to want to get better individually and would like to be a part of a successful team. Once that attitude is there, it makes my job a lot easier, instead of trying to push people you’re trying to hold them back.”Kent’s squad has undergone significant change with Joe Denly departing for Middlesex and Martin van Jaarsveld retiring. Mark Davies, Ben Harmison, Charlie Shreck and Mike Powell have all arrived. But the man who Adams says everything revolves around has been at Kent for 24 years: captain Rob Key. His experience and leadership will give Adams the chance to focus on developing Kent’s crop of youngsters – including England Under-19 captain Adam Ball and batsman Daniel Bell-Drummond – than immediate results.”There are a lot of intangibles when you talk about the game of cricket,” Adams said. “The opposition might just outplay you totally but in that three or four days you might have made progress along the way, depending on the players that you have.”Kent begin their new season at Headingley against Yorkshire, who were relegated from Division One of the championship last season and who are strong favourites to bounce back immediately. Faced with such a stern opening assignment, Adams’ reduced emphasis on winning from the start might yet prove advantageous.

Chris Martin, the New Zealand fast bowler, has become the first recipient of the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal, an honour given to the country’s best player of the year

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2011New Zealand Cricket Awards winners

Chris Martin – Sir Richard Hadlee Medal, player of the year

Brendon McCullum – Test Player of the Year (527 runs at 58.55)

Ross Taylor – ODI Player of the Year, (798 runs at 39.90)

Tim Southee – Twenty20 Player of the Year, (eight wickets at 12.12)

Sara McGlashan – Women’s Player of the Year

Sophie Devine – Women’s domestic Player of the year (Four fifties, 24 wickets)

Rob Nicol – Domestic Player of the year (top scorer in Twenty20 and one-day competitions)

Peter Ingram – Redpath Cup, best first-class batting (965 runs at 50.47)

Chris Martin – Winsor Cup, best first-class bowling (60 wickets at 25.60)

Neil Wagner – Fans’ Choice for outstanding individual performance (Taking five wickets in an over)

Simon Hickey – Young player of the year

Ces Renwick – Bert Sutcliffe Medal, for outstanding services to cricket

Nick Craig – Sir Jack Newman Award, outstanding junior cricket administrator

Chris Martin, the New Zealand fast bowler, has become the first recipient of the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal, an honour given to the country’s best player of the year. There was another gong for him at the New Zealand Cricket Awards in Auckland, winning the Winsor Cup for first-class bowling.Martin, 36, was also a finalist for the Test player of the year and a nominee for Fans’ Choice award for his devastating spell in Ahmedabad when he had India pinned at 15 for 5. He took 60 first-class wickets in the 2010-11 season, including 18 in Tests and 31 for Auckland.”Chris works very hard and has strongly led the BLACKCAPS and Aces bowling attack for this past season and the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal is well deserved,” NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan said.”There were a number of individuals who put their hand up for the supreme award but no one can deny that in the past 12 months Chris has been a stand-out performer in international and domestic First-Class cricket.”The other major winners in the revamped NZC awards were: Brendon McCullum as Test Player of the year, in a season where he took the gamble of becoming a specialist batsman in Tests, and moved up the order; new captain Ross Taylor as ODI Player of the year, in a season where he was the highest run-getter for New Zealand with 798; Tim Southee as outstanding player in Twenty20s, in a year where he took a five-for including a hat-trick against Pakistan which won him the ICC award for Best Twenty20 performance; Sara McGlashan as women’s Player of the Year.