Tuesday 26th August 2014 9:21
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Angel Di Maria's signing is "one part of a jigsaw that still has pieces missing" says Gary Neville, who has picked his 'fantasy Man United XI'.
Gary Neville's 'dream Manchester United XI' - (3-3-2-1-1)
De Gea, Valencia, Jones, Evans, Rojo, Shaw; Carrick; Di Maria, Herrera; Mata; Rooney.
With the British record signing of Angel Di Maria seemingly certain to go through on Tuesday, the question as to where the Argentinian fits into Louis van Gaal's United side is raised.
Di Maria will soon join for £59.7m, adding to an already impressive array of attacking talent at Old Trafford.
It's one of United's current players, Juan Mata, that Red legend Gary Neville thinks can benefit the most from Di Maria's arrival.
Speaking on Monday Night Football on Sky Sports 1, Neville was asked on his thoughts on the imminent Di Maria signing.
"I think he'll improve Juan Mata. Mata relies on people running past him - he manipulates the ball, shifts the ball from side to side - but he relies upon the runs.
"The fact that United are playing without a great deal of pace in the team isn't helping him, even though his goal record from central positions has been good.
"He's scored seven goals in 10 appearances when played in central areas; a good record. He isn't any good out wide, which is why he left Chelsea. I believe that's part of the reason why Louis van Gaal's playing the system that he's playing, to get Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie and Mata into the team."
After defeat at home to Swansea and a disappointing draw away at Sunderland, many have called into question Dutchman van Gaal's 3-5-2 formation, which he used to great effect during the Netherlands' successful World Cup run.
However, with eight players sitting out through injury, the personnel required for the formation could be missing.
Neville believes buys such as Di Maria can only improve United, adding more fluidity and variety to the attack, and he rejects the notion that van Gaal will struggle to 'fit players in'.
"The way in which Louis van Gaal talks, he wants five particular sections of the pitch all covered", Neville told Monday Night Football.
"This way, you can put van Persie back in for Rooney, Januzaj can be drafted in."
"Manchester United historically have had 22, 23 players in the squad. If you look at the Manchester City team on Monday night, or look at the Chelsea squad, the players that they've got on the bench.
"Don't worry about the fact that you've got too many quality players that you might not be able to fit in, you'll need them over a 40-50 game season.
"The fact that they're filling the squad with a better quality of player who can run is more exciting for United. The signing of Di Maria is going to be something that I think will start off a bit more confidence for the team.
Mata will definitely benefit from having more pace around him."
With the Di Maria signing almost wrapped up, attentions now turn to United's next target. Van Gaal sent the transfer rumour mill into overdrive when name-dropping Juventus midfielder Arturo Vidal in his post-match comments on Sunday, but links to the likes of the manager's national counterpart Daley Blind persist.
Blind, the 24-year-old from Ajax, is a versatile player who can play on the left-side, and has deputised in central midfield. Reports suggest that the Dutchman will command a fee of around £15m, and Neville feels that he could be a good buy.
"Daley Blind is a left-sided centre-back or a left-wing back. They've got Luke Shaw and Marcos Rojo, but they might need three players for that side of the pitch anyway. If one gets injured you'll need another; you need two players in every position.
"United need a robust central midfielder player and a centre-back of real stature.
It's one part of a jigsaw that's still got pieces missing."
via TEAMtalk | Manchester Utd http://ift.tt/1BXZgyu
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