Old Trafford boss switches attention from White Hart Lane target to another.
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Man United boss Sir Alex Ferguson will this summer switch his focus from one Tottenham midfield target to another as the Scot weighs up a bid for Rafael Van der Vaart. The Old Trafford boss has been heavily linked with interest in scheme Luka Modric but has noted how White Hart Lane chairman Daniel Levy doggedly refused to sell the Croatian international and will therefore look to turn his attention to his Dutch team-mate.
Ferguson is reportedly looking to add more creativity to his Man United midfield but was sufficiently impressed with the performances given by youngster Tom Cleverley put in prior to being sidelined with ligament damage. This has led to less of a need for a long term playmaker signing and an interest in former Ajax, Hamburg and Real Madrid man Van der Vaart.
With Van der Vaart nearing his 29th birthday Ferguson may feel he is a less tough transfer nut to crack and having seen the talented attacking midfielder adapt to Premier League football so well the Man United manager is hoping to lure the Tottenham man to make the move to the reigning Premier League champions this summer.
Sir Alex Ferguson is said to be ready to offer up to £20m for the player who cost Harry Redknapp just £8m in August 2010 and he may try to sweeten the deal by adding the option of a Man United squad player as part of a swap deal. Those likely to be available for such a move include former Tottenham striker Dimitar Berbatov and Federico Macheda, both of whom may attract the North London club as they do not have a great many attacking options.
Redknapp will be loathed to lose Van der Vaart but would presumably prefer to consider such an option over the loss of Modric of fellow first team regular Gareth Bale, both of whom have been heavily linked with interest from a number of Europe’s elite.
Ferguson will feel his offer for Van der Vaart will prove more likely to tempt the 93 cap Dutch international if Tottenham’s title bid fades away, or indeed if they suffer a poor run of form and miss out on a top four place all together.
Man United were said to be interested in the Van der Vaart prior to his move from Ajax to Real Madrid, a move that saw the playmaker stagnate at the Bernabeu for two seasons before his career saving move to Tottenham.