The Mexican sport press has always kept a very close eye on all Mexican players participating in the European leagues, with Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez being the usual focus of said coverage.
After a lackluster season under Moyes, and with plenty of competition for a starting spot, Chicharito has been heavily linked with a Summer departure from Old Trafford. Record, Mexico’s largest sports magazine, and second largest online publication, has stated that Chicharito is being linked with with Juventus, where Manchester United would trade Chicharito, another (yet unknown) player, plus €45 million for Arturo Vidal.
Record interviewed Eduardo Hernandez, Chicharito’s agent, where he stated “I don’t have any news at the moment… but there will soon be an announcement”. Record went on to state the possibility of the above mentioned players, plus cash deal.
Record is a well respected institution in Mexico, however, they do tend to publish unsubstantiated transfer rumours on a somewhat regular basis. Medio Tiempo, Mexico’s largest online sports publication, which rarely publishes unconfirmed transfer rumours, has not written about Chicharito being linked with a Juventus deal for Vidal, thus weakening the validity of Record’s argument.
What is certain, is that Manchester United is interested in Arturo Vidal, and that Chicharito is basically a surplus player at Old Trafford, reduced to rare appearances from the bench. Van Gaal definitely has the money at hand to make the offer, and would certainly be open to the idea of trading away Javier Hernandez for a star like Vidal.
To further strengthen the validity of this transfer rumour, is the fact that bookies have suspended betting on Vidal joining Manchester United. It appears bookmakers no longer feel confident offering this bet, given the apparent possibility of the trade.
Arturo Vidal has been van Gaal’s #1 transfer target, and he may well yet pull the trigger on this trade, however, no official reports have neither confirmed nor denied the rumour, so, at this point, it is only that, a rumour. A rumour that has Manchester United fans around the globe waiting in anticipation.
What do you think, any real chance of this transfer happening, or is it just more rumours from the press?
