Manchester United are preparing to test Bayern Munich's resolve
with a first official bid for Owen Hargreaves, thought to be in the
region of £17m, but the Premiership leaders will not be getting
involved in any other transfers until the summer.
Sir Alex Ferguson has already stated he is only "looking at one
thing" and yesterday it was the chief executive David Gill's turn
to play down suggestions that the club may seek to strengthen other
areas. United have already added Henrik Larsson to their playing
staff, albeit on a seven-week loan arrangement with Helsingborgs,
and Gill said that it is unlikely they would bring in anyone
else.
"The money is there but traditionally we do most of our big
spending in the summer and I think that will continue," he said.
"Things may change. If there's an area in which we want to do
something then we'll do it. But we don't plan to do a great deal.
We've brought in Larsson, while a number of the players who have
been out on loan are back."
United's priority is Hargreaves and they have been increasingly
encouraged by some of the noises coming out of Munich. The
Bundesliga champions do not want to lose one of their key players
but they are aware that there are pitfalls in keeping a player who
is keen to leave. Hargreaves, close to fitness after recovering
from a broken leg, has made that clear he wants to leave, even
being fined on one occasion, and United believe they have a 50-50
chance. "I think we all know the area in which we want to
strengthen," Gill said. "But I'm not going to comment on
that."
Looking further ahead, United have been alerted to the news that
Marseille are willing to sell the France international Franck
Ribery for around £17m.
