Diarra Is Too Old, Benzema & Modric Too Expensive

OK, the latest transfer rumours indicate we are approaching the silly season, even though there is a World Cup on the horizon - that will make the transfer market even more frenzied if anything, though.

First, we are apparently interested in Real Madrid midfielder Mahamadou Diarra who played only sporadically for Madrid this season and who's been talking about being flattered to be linked with a club like Manchester United. Very nice of him but he'll turn 29 soon and that's not quite the age category we're looking for. I hope so, at least.

Then there are the neverending rumours about Karim Benzema. In the unlikely event that he would consider leaving Real Madrid after only one year, surely we can't afford him? He would command a hefty transfer fee and would demand very high wages. Again, very unlikely. We missed this particular train last summer I'm afraid.

Luka Modric is another name to pop up and I don't want to beat about the bush here: I would love to have him at Old Trafford, even though his finishing ability rivals that of Anderson. But he's exactly the kind of player we need now with Scholes and Giggs getting even older. But Spurs would demand an exorbitant fee for him, no doubt, especially as we now have a history of getting their best players, much to their annoyance (see Carrick and Berbatov). Too expensive for our debt-ridden club, again.

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