Manchester United’s turn: Shinji Kagawa pursuit takes next step

There are going to be tons of transfer rumors this summer, but some make so much sense, they’re hard to ignore.

Take the developing tale of Shinji Kagawa. During this month’s German Cup final, Borussia Dortmund’s attacking midfielder was scouted in person by Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson. With the Red Devils’ midfield currently looking more like mid-table fodder than title-contending material, signing somebody who can actually stimulate the attack has got to be priority number one.

Enter Kagawa, thought to be United’s back up plan should they lose the race to Eden Hazard. Now that the Ligue 1 Player of the Year is headed to London, it’s time for Ferguson to act, not that he hadn’t before.

If reports are to be believed, Manchester United originally offered around $22 million for the Japan international. Dortmund shot that down. Now, the Red Devils have given BVB a bid in excess of $27 million, a bid the German champions seem ready to accept.

Personal terms are yet to be agreed, a potentially significant issue for the penny-pinching Red Devils. Their salary offer to Eden Hazard was reportedly the worst amongst the Belgian’s three English suitors. While Kagawa can’t command the compensation due Hazard, United may try to leverage the club’s reputation.

You know what makes up for less money? Playing for Manchester United! It’s all part of the package.

But don’t make the common error of confusing penny-pinching for being impoverished. A common meme holds that Manchester United have no money, which is really weird since I remember them recently buying all of Ashley Young, Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and David de Gea. Oh, yeah – they were also in for Eden Hazard. Perhaps Fleet Street just wants Manchester United to spend more, but clearly, they’re not poor. They’re spending something. A lot of somethings.

It would be more accurate to say Manchester United don’t seem to be allocating their resources appropriately. Instead of buying Ashley Young (when they already had Nani and Antonio Valencia), they should have put that money toward Inter Milan’s Wesley Sneijder (to whom they were linked last year). Instead of signing both Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, they could have bought a midfielder that would have kept Paul Scholes in retirement.

The Red Devils seem to be learning their lessons, hence Kagawa. Capped 30 times for Japan, Kagawa has spent the last two seasons with the German champions, scoring 29 goals in 71 all-competition matches. He’s won two Bundesligas, one German Cup, and with Japan, he won the Asian Cup in 2011.

The only problem Kagawa’s had over the last two years has been staying on the field. In each of the league two seasons, he’s suffered a long-term leg injury. It’s led some to label Kagawa as injury-prone, a description which might be premature. Freak injuries are different than chronic ailments, and Kagawa’s problems are more readily thought of as aberrations – bad luck.

For United, Kagawa would be a perfect fit, particularly as Ferguson’s tactics have his team spending more time letting play come on to them. As we were reminded in Dortmund’s dismantling of Bayern Munich in the German Cup final, Kagawa’s excellent at springing a team into the counter. If his presence in red allows Wayne Rooney to shift from starting attacks to finishing them, he’ll be well worth the money.

Kagawa could also sign for less than half the wages of Hazard. If he does, United may have room for one more meaningful midfield acquisition.