Man Utd Transfers: 10 Players Van Gaal Must Target In January
4. William Carvalho
Another central midfield option in the January transfer window is William Carvalho. The Sporting Lisbon man was on the radar of a number of Premier League sides over the summer, with both Arsenal and United keen on the defensive midfielder. And given the Red Devils woes in central midfield, the Portugal international would surely have made for a good signing. Marouane Fellaini has flopped following his move from Everton last summer, and Carvalho would have been a more-than-able alternative.
Yet despite the speculation that United were interested, nothing came to fruition and Carvalho remained at Sporting. Still only 22, the starlet has a hugely bright future and this is probably not the last we've heard of rumours linking him with a move to the Premier League - especially if Louis van Gaal fails to solve his midfield problem.
The Reds have a positive working relationship with Lisbon, having signed Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani from them in the past, while they agreed to loan the latter back to the Portuguese outfit earlier this summer. And that positive relationship could well smooth over a deal in January.