Man United could 'end up like Spurs' as RVP heads for exit

DAVID MOYES will have a gargantuan rebuilding job on his hands at Manchester United this summer, assuming he is still at the club, after claims that fed-up striker Robin van Persie is yet another star who wants out. The Dutch forward appeared to direct some thinly veiled criticism at his manager and team-mates after United's Champions League humiliation against Olympiakos on Tuesday night, accusing other players of getting in his way. According to The Guardian the Dutch striker is "uncertain whether to remain at Manchester United and will consider his future in the summer". Nemanja Vidic has already announced that he is leaving Old Trafford at the end of the season, and he is expected to be joined by Rio Ferdinand and Ryan Giggs. There are also question marks over the future of Patrice Evra and a host of squad players including Rafael and Shinji Kagawa. Others like Michael Carrick and Tom Cleverly have looked off the pace this season. If Van Persie joins the exodus it will only add to the pressure on Moyes. Speaking after the game against Olympiakos, pundit and former United midfielder Roy Keane said Moyes needed seven new players, and it looks as though any new arrivals would walk straight into the first team. With so many stars heading for the exit, only Wayne Rooney and possibly David de Gea look definites for the first match of the 2014-15 season. "The departures of Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand and Ryan Giggs at the end of the season mean that the usual quota of two or three changes each summer at Old Trafford will be taken up by natural wastage alone," warns the Evening Standard from its vantage point in London. "There will be three or four new buys - but many more than that and United are going resemble a club in as much flux as Tottenham at the start of the campaign." But they may have no choice. "United plan to invest significantly in new players this summer. Although they are aware that a huge turnover of players in and out could be unsettling, they are prepared to do whatever is necessary in the transfer market," says the Daily Mail. As for Van Persie, there have been rumours about his future all season. He was said to be upset over the retirement of Alex Ferguson, who was key to his move from Arsenal in 2012. His "demeanour" has changed under Moyes, says the Daily Telegraph, and "his comments in Athens gave a voice to the sulking image". However, his contract contains no get-out clause and it will be down to Moyes to decide whether he can leave. A return to Arsenal has been rumoured, but not everyone wants him back. Metro blogger Lee Hurley brands him "disruptive" and says he is behaving towards United as he did the Gunners. "After one year with United and one trophy, the injuries are back and the tantrums are starting to surface," he says. "He didn't want to show any more patience at Arsenal and now he has to do just exactly that at United as he enters the final years of his career."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up