Premier League giants Manchester United are set to put their summer recruitment plans into overdrive over the coming weeks and months as the Red Devils plan to ‘step up’ their pursuit of West Ham midfielder and England star Declan Rice.
According to recent reports in The MirrorUnited are at the head of the queue that is forming at the door of Rice, who is widely expected to be the subject of an intense three-way battle for his services this summer as both Manchester City and Chelsea are also said to be eyeing a move for the England international.
Man Utd pursuing Declan Rice as part of midfield ‘overhaul’ regardless of latest transfer admissionhttps://t.co/Tcvj6Y6Xgl pic.twitter.com/sAO2PS9g5u
– Mirror Football (@MirrorFootball) February 4, 2022
West Ham are anticipated to remain dug in regarding their stance on Rice and are not prepared to accept losing their most-prized possession for anything less than £ 100million. Though United are said to be in pole position to land the former Chelsea academy product, Rice’s recent quotes linking him to a desire to stay in or around the London area could be a hammer blow to the Red Devil’s chances of making him a key piece the expected overhaul to take place in the summer.
Man United to compile large list of targets
The same report in the Mirror made mention of the fact that current interim boss Ralf Rangnick and the Man United hierarchy will go full bore in the summer window given the uncertainty that exists in midfield.
With Paul Pogba expected to leave the club, Nemanja Matić getting on in age, and both Fred and Scott McTominay regularly being inconsistent, the Red Devils are said to already be compiling a huge list of potential summer targets that will eventually be narrowed down to a 10-man shortlist with multiple acquisitions expected.
A few key names said to already be on the list are Leeds United star Kalvin Phillips as well as RB Leipzig’s Amadou Haidara.
LEIPZIG, GERMANY – NOVEMBER 03: Amadou Haidara of RB Leipzig vies with Angel di Maria of Paris Saint Germain during the UEFA Champions League group A match between RB Leipzig and Paris Saint-Germain at Red Bull Arena on November 03, 2021 in Leipzig, Germany . (Photo by Stefan Matzke – sampics / Corbis via Getty Images)
Phillips may be off the table however as it has been said that he may be unwilling to join a bitter rival given his commitment to Leeds as a homegrown player, and with Rangnick’s preference for Haidara, United may have already landed on a key target they can focus on in earnest.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester City | 23 | 41 | 57 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 22 | 39 | 48 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 24 | 30 | 47 |
| 4 | Manchester United | 22 | 6 | 38 |
| 5 | West Ham United | 23 | 10 | 37 |
| 6 | Arsenal FC | 21 | 8 | 36 |
| 7 | Tottenham Hotspur | 20 | 2 | 36 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 21 | 3 | 34 |
| 9 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 22 | 0 | 30 |
| 10 | Leicester city | 20 | -3 | 26 |
| 11 | Aston Villa | 21 | -4 | 26 |
| 12 | Southampton FC | 22 | -8 | 25 |
| 13 | Crystal Palace | 22 | -3 | 24 |
| 14 | Brentford FC | 23 | -12 | 23 |
| 15 | Leeds United | 21 | -16 | 22 |
| 16 | Everton FC | 20 | -11 | 19 |
| 17 | Norwich city | 22 | -32 | 16 |
| 18 | Newcastle United | 21 | -22 | 15 |
| 19 | Watford FC | 20 | -17 | 14 |
| 20 | Burnley FC | 18 | -11 | 12 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 16 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester city | 9 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 8 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 8 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 8 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 |
| Smith-Rowe, Emile | Arsenal FC | 8 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 8 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 8 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 7 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 7 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 7 |
| Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 7 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 7 |
| Silva, Bernardo | Manchester City | 7 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 6 |
| Mahrez, Riyadh | Manchester City | 6 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 6 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester city | 6 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 7 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 6 |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 7 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 6 |
| Rice, Declan | West Ham United | 0 | 6 |
| Westwood, Ashley | Burnley FC | 0 | 6 |
| Alonso, Marcos | Chelsea FC | 0 | 6 |
| Norgaard, Christian | Brentford FC | 0 | 6 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 6 |
| Laporte, Aymeric | Manchester City | 1 | 5 |
| Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 6 |
| Llorente, Diego | Leeds United | 0 | 6 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 6 |
| Maguire, Harry | Manchester United | 0 | 5 |
| Ward, Joel | Crystal Palace | 0 | 6 |
| Skipp, Oliver | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 6 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 0 | 4 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 5 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 1 | 4 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 1 | 4 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 9 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 8 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 7 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 7 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 7 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 6 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 6 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 5 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 5 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 5 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Kovacic, Mateo | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Redmond, Nathan | Southampton FC | 5 |
| Mahrez, Riyadh | Manchester City | 4 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 4 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 4 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 4 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester city | 4 |
| Rice, Declan | West Ham United | 4 |
