Scouting Report: Manchester United Linked With £37.5m Midfielder

According to the Daily Mail, Manchester United have sent a scouting team to Portugal to watch Sporting Lisbon midfielder William Carvalho, whose contract at his current club ends in 2018. I thought that I would run through a coupld of points about the player, and whether or not I think Moyes should be making a move for the £37.5 million man.

Strengths

The Portugal international is a strong player who has an immaculate tactical intelligence. He is rarely caught out of position and can hold the shape of his midfield even when squeezing tight on opponents, and for me that's his greatest asset.

He is confident on the ball, his tackling is largely impressive and his powerful frame means he's dominant in the air.

Weaknesses

Although it's hard to pin point a weakness, he can sometimes be a bit rash when closing down an opponent. So rather than standing off the player and narrowing his options, there has been occasions when he goes in to intercept the ball or something similar, and the player simply spins off him.

He will, or at least should, grow out of this with experience though as he's still only 21.

Where would he fit?

Although United have had a problem with their midfield, it has been more in the creative, attacking roles rather than the sitting places. The Red Devils have Darren Fletcher, Tom Cleverley and Michael Carrick, as well as Marouane Fellaini, so it could be difficult to fit him in, although he is a box-to-box players.

Yay or nay?

I would say yes, as long as Moyes gets rid of a few names in the summer. I would give Cleverley and Fletcher the boot and build the midfield around this player and Juan Mata.

Comments

[Sir Cecil]

Mata is not a player to build a team around. Are you totally blind to his inadequacies? Mourinho wasn't and he kicked him out. That's because the player is a liability.
Don't take my word for it. Watch a re-run of the Stoke game. Apart from a couple of dinky, clever passes, he does NOTHING. Yes, he can make a goal or score one in a game, but at Stoke, just like when he was at Chelsea, his lack of application or bravery or energy costs games. Again, watch the Stoke game and see.
His "running" is just a trot. Where other players run towards an opponent and CHALLENGE, Mata makes only token gestures, always ensuring he arrives just too late to actually do anything. He goes through the motions of running towards the action, but makes sure he avoids it. For every good moment he has in possession, there are a dozen moments when he shirks or altogether avoids involvement. AGAIN, DON'T TAKE MY WORD FOR IT - WATCH AND SEE. He is a highlights-reel player, catching the eye when he makes a pass, but when things go wrong for the team, it never seems to be his fault because he's simply not seen. So it's the other players doing his workload in addition to their own who get stick instead.
Would Chelsea's great performance at Manchester City have happened with Mata in the side? Certainly not. His powderpuff efforts and avoidance of physical contact would have sabotaged the team display. He might have played two or three good passes or set up a goal, but what use is an assist 1-2 or 1-3 defeat? This is why in two seasons with Mata, Chelsea finished in their lowest league positions since well before Abramovich arrived. Plenty of highlight reel stuff to see, but fewer points than ever.
Mourinho saw this immediately. Do you think he would sell Hazard or Oscar to Utd? Of course not. He knows Mata is a man of big skill but little backbone. When Mourinho sees Mata, he sees weakness. Watch the Stoke game again and study his avoidance of any physical situation. It really is pitiful. It's fine that he seeks space for himself, but he does NOTHING to close space for his opponents. He is only 25 but has less energy and speed than a 35 year old.
Build a team around Mata and you do exactly what Jose Mourinho hopes you will do.