Sir Alex Targets Real's Benzema
Manchester United are targeting Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema, who moved to the Spanish giants from French side Olympique Lyonnais only one year ago. The deal could reportedly be worth up to £25 million in what would be a crucial addition to Sir Alex Ferguson’s striking force.
Having promised his supporters he would land one big signing during the current transfer window, it is looking increasingly likely that Real’s unsettled Frenchman will be the notable addition to Manchester United’s squad.
Even before his move to Real, Benzema was targeted by United, but the Spanish giants 35 million dollar offer was too generous for Lyon to be able to resist.
If completed, the move would see Benzema line up alongside striker Wayne Rooney, who has had to carry too many of his team’s offensive responsibilities over the past few seasons, as some would say.
The sluggish Benzema, who scored 8 goals in 28 games for Real Madrid during the past season, has failed to settle in with the Spanish giants. His modest performances from the team, where he often started games on the bench, led to his exclusion from the French World Cup squad.
French coach Raymond Domenech was criticized for his decision to exclude Benzema, who scored 5 goals in 14 appearances during France’s qualifying campaign.
Benzema has said he is looking for more playing time than he has been awarded over the past season, and a move to Manchester United could prove to be the solution. If the move does materialize, though, Benzema will likely have to accommodate Rooney’s tendency to drop deep in the pitch to collect the ball and initiate play.
Ever since releasing Argentinian power forward Carlos Tevez to Manchester City in 2009, Sir Alex has struggled to find the right striking partner for Rooney. With Cristiano Ronaldo starring in the 2008/2009 season, Rooney found himself placed on the left wing of a three-man attack where defensive work was one of his main tasks.
With Tevez and Ronaldo gone at the end of the 2008/2009 season, neither Bulgarian hitman Dimitar Berbatov nor veteran Michael Owen were able to partner Rooney with much success this year.
Berbatov, who scored 12 goals in 33 appearances for United during the past season, has largely failed to silence critics of the £30m price tag his former team Tottenham placed on him ahead of his 2008 transfer to United.
The injury-plagued Owen, a former Real Madrid player, signed with United in July 2009 on a pay-as-you-play deal. During this past season, the English veteran scored three goals in 19 appearances for United, and most of them as a substitute.
It is thought that Berbatov, whose playing style entails setting up offensive moves as much as finishing them off, will be sold during the transfer window to fund United’s move for Benzema. Benzema’s arrival could also see the termination of Owen’s United contract.
The move would be Sir Alex’s attempt to see the goal-hungry Benzema complement Rooney’s all-round striking genius. Rooney, as apt at scoring goals as setting them up, would perhaps be allowed to take more of a play-making role behind center forward Benzema.
In this role the Frenchman, who scored 37 goals in 72 appearances for Lyon during the 2007/2008 and 2008/2009 seasons, could provide the clinical finishing that will decide games when Rooney is unable to.
The deal for Benzema could also be funded by the sale of United’s Brazilian holding midfielder Anderson, who suffered a knee ligament injury in January of this year. Lyon, Olympique Marseille and Paris Saint Germain are said to have expressed their interest in Anderson during the past season.
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