A new central midfielder
Michael Carrick will be 34 by the time the season begins, and the England international can hardly still be expected to maintain the same influence he has done for so long.
Several names have been mooted as potential partners for and upgrades on the ex-Tottenham Hotspur man, with Morgan Schneiderlin [Standard] and Bastian Schweinsteiger [Sky Sports] two of the key candidates to bolster the midfield.