Manchester United turn attentions to Spain to fill Evra’s shoes

Rumours from Spain suggest Sevilla’s highly-rated young left-back Alberto Moreno has been earmarked as a possible long-term replacement for Patrice Evra by Manchester United and the club could bid for him in January.

Given David Moyes’ long-standing affiliation with Everton, it was only natural the Scot pursue one of the Toffees’ brightest talents in the summer transfer market, soon after taking up the reins at Old Trafford.

However, attempts to sign Leighton Baines proved futile and now it seems Moyes and Man United have identified another possible candidate to fill the void soon to be created by long-standing left-back Evra, who is set to leave in the summer when his current contract expires.

At only 21-years-old, Moreno is an exceptional talent, whose performances for Sevilla this season have been enough to reward him with a first international cap by Vincente del Bosque in Spain’s last World Cup qualifier against Georgia.

And with Baines already 28, the Spaniard would certainly represent an investment geared towards the long term.

The main potential sticking point to any prospective transfer to the Premier League is the reported £25m release clause written into Moreno’s Sevilla contract.

This represents a huge outlay for any young player, but with Chelsea also sniffing around Moreno, it may be a gamble the Red Devils have to take and the early indications are that Moyes will be granted a sizeable January budget if he needs it.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid’s Fabio Coentrao and Saint Etienne’s Faouzi Ghoulam are both thought to remain on Moyes’ watchlist of other potential left-backs, should they decided this option does not provide enough value.

Although their form has been picked up in recent weeks, it’s been a bumpy ride for Moyes in his new role so far, making decisive action in the transfer market a priority.

As United look to go about closing an eight-point gap to top-placed Arsenal in the Premier League, they remain in the wholly unfamiliar territory of outsiders for the title, at 7/1 with Ladbrokes.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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