Manchester United are preparing their first attempt to try and sign a player using the Cristiano Ronaldo transfer cash. United are reportedly piecing together a bid for Inter Milan striker, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, as they look to bring in a high profile target to replace their former Portuguese play maker.

United have been knocked by a lot of people in the game over the last two weeks or so because of their failure to move in securing the signatures of a lot of influential players who are all moving to Spain. They have just missed out on signing Karim Benzema from Lyon and Franck Ribery of Bayern Munich looks set to follow his fellow Frenchman to Real Madrid.

There is no dancing around the fact that United need a big and high calibre striker, as they are short up front. The arrival of Michael Owen at Old Trafford was nothing more than a stop gap move and they were always going to be linked with a big name player sooner or later. United are going to need a big player that has the ability to change a game instantly and someone that can bring other people into a match just by his presence at the top of the pitch.

Whether Ibrahimovic is the right person for United is highly debatable. Sir Alex Ferguson clearly rates the six-foot plus tall Swede but a lot of pundits would call it a bad move as he rarely turns up in a lot of big games. Furthermore he is well liked by Jose Mourinho who will be incredibly reluctant to let the player leave unless it is in a huge deal.

This is a deal that probably wouldn’t justify the player and United could well be better off looking at other options. The English champions still have a lot of time before the next season starts and they should not panic about trying to find a striker to lead their attack in the coming campaign.

It is easy to see why United may be interested in such a player because he does have a lot going for him. He is tall and very quick on his feet for a player of his height. United will need a big target man up front as they will not now be able to play their slick and aggressive passing football as Ronaldo was so integral to the success of this style of play.

Although a lot of people have called Ibrahimovic quite selfish in the past a move to United and England could end up revitalising his career. The player has already hinted that he wants to move away from the Italian game, which apparently does not suit his style of play and is too slow. He would probably be quite grateful for a move to English football and would therefore be a good signing as United are going to need someone who will sweat blood for the side.

The point is however that a lot of people are supposedly telling Sir Alex Ferguson to steer clear of any bid he is considering making for him. He could get a lot more for his money and the Swedish front man has not really done enough to justify such a huge price tag.

In a football world that is becoming increasingly dominated by cash, Inter are clearly trying to make the most out of a bad situation and United need to keep their business heads on otherwise they could well end up being ripped off.

Ferguson will have a long list of targets and he needs to weigh up how important each one is to his United side. It is important to remember that Ferguson will probably now be considering reinventing his side as he lost two very influential players so far this summer in Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez.

Ferguson has a very good idea of where he wants to take the current side and if Ibrahimovic fits into this philosophy then United will be hard pushed to find someone to match his characteristics. However, they really do need to proceed with caution because the Swede can be very temperamental at times and United will need someone who can raise his level of performance consistently.

Ibrahimovic cannot always do this easily and on a consistent basis and many will say that this, equipped with his slight ego, are the two main reasons why Ferguson should not go any where near the player. It will be interesting to see how the move develops as United could do a lot better.

However, if they do sign one of the top scorers in the Italian leagues then they will have to work very hard in basing the team around him. Ibrahimovic does not strike the ordinary fan as a player that can adapt himself to a team and this will make United’s job a lot harder as they restructure to have another go at European and domestic success.

It is impossible to say at this moment in time whether it would be a gamble that pays off because the move has so many advantages and disadvantages. The money being talked about is a lot of cash in the current climate and United should only spend it if they are absolutely certain that this player is the person to help them move forward.

They may let the move go because the doubts are too big to ignore. Being the top scorer in Italy is totally different to being the top scorer in England where the league is a lot more difficult to play in.

Ibrahimovic is a player that relies on time on the ball and not being pressured in order to make space and bring other players into the side. These are things that he would not get in the Premier League and they are things that mean United may be better off in going for another target. I’m sure with this player that if Real Madrid came in and tried to poach him, United probably wouldn’t be too annoyed.

Lyon have accepted that they are close to defeat in their attempts to try and keep star player, Karim Benzema. The young Frenchman is thought to head a shortlist of attacking players that Sir Alex Ferguson will try to buy to make good the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Manchester United would be a good destination for the young man and it should not unsettle him too much in terms of moving to another country. He would be well positioned to be able to go home frequently and the pace of the Premier League could suit him well as he continues his development as a player.

Lyon had insisted that the player would not be going to another club this summer but the club’s president, Jean-Michel Aulas, has now admitted that £35 million would be a hard fee to turn down. United would probably be happy to pay it as well because it is a lot less than they would have to fork out for Franck Ribery of Bayern Munich.





Aulas said: “Karim has said he wants to stay at Lyon but I think Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka also imagined they would be staying with their clubs. There is a tsunami known as Real Madrid sweeping through football which leads to a reaction from Chelsea, City and tomorrow United.”

“I won’t hide the fact he has been approached by other teams – as a consequence, saying that he is non-transferable is tough.”

Benzema has been far and away the most potent of Lyon’s attacking players over the last two seasons, scoring 54 goals in the process of becoming the most feared player in the top-flight of French football. This has meant that he has attracted a lot of interest but the rumours linking him with United have existed for a lot longer than those associating him with any other clubs.

He would also benefit from the fact that Patrice Evra, his international team mate, already plays at United and could easily help him settle in. He would also be more likely to get a starting place at United as opposed to if he joined a top Spanish side. The thought of Benzema and Rooney side by side, destroying defences is a truly terrifying prospect.




It may also be the case that Ferguson wants to go for a player that mirrors how Ronaldo was when he first went to United. Although Benzema would arrive with a higher profile and the statistics to back him up, he would be similar to the Portuguese winger in the respect that he still has the naivety of youth. This could allow the United boss to mould him into a truly terrifying player that could benefit United in a number of other areas.

Lyon now seem resigned to the fact that they will have to sell the player as soon as United come in with a big bid. Benzema would be well advised to ignore the lucrative rival offers that are likely to come his way and think about what would be best for him personally and his career in the game.