Man Utd Transfers: 5 Essential Replacements For Rio Ferdinand
Rio Ferdinand retired from international football in order to prolong his career with Manchester United. The inconvenient truth is that at the age of 34-years-old the veteran defender will eventually have to consider retiring altogether. Despite entering his twilight years some time ago, Rio had an incredible campaign last season and continued to be a huge influence in Uniteds defence. The centre-back joined from Leeds United in 2002 for just under £30 million and for the last eleven years has been a main player in Uniteds back four. With Rio having signed a deal with BT Sport to become a football television pundit, all signs are pointing to the player retiring in the next year or so. Whilst Manchester United have Nemanja Vidic, Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Jonny Evans all capable of playing at centre-back, the Premier League champions could benefit from expanding their squad and buying another centre-back in order to fill the gap Ferdinand will leave. Here is a list of five players who could help strengthen Uniteds back four once Rio hangs up his boots.
5. Raphael Varane
Raphael Varane would not be a straight swap for Rio Ferdinand, but logically he could be a smart transfer acquisition for new Manchester United boss, David Moyes. The Real Madrid youngster will no doubt continue to improve his game in the next few seasons and in five years time will likely be one of the strongest centre-backs in Europe. Whilst United do have a wide selection of up and coming talent in defence, adding Varane to the squad will not only help fill the gap once Rio retires, he is also a reliable defender who could fill in for Nemanja Vidic if he is unable to play. The 20-year-old has gradually started breaking into the Real Madrid squad and last year made 15 league appearances for his club. Varane also appeared in eleven Champions League games proving that even at such a young age he can battle with the best strikers in Europe. It is unclear just how much the Frenchman would cost the club but with the transfer likely to secure the back four for the foreseeable future, even spending of £20 million would likely be seen as a bargain in the next few seasons.