Manchester United have already made it clear that their plan for the 2027 transfer windows is to strengthen their defence.
In 2025, INEOS bolstered the attack by bringing in Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo, and Benjamin Sesko, while this past summer they stacked their midfield with the arrivals of Andrey Santos, Youri Tielemans and Carlos Baleba.
United looked at adding defenders to the squad this summer but no deals materialised, and it has now emerged that the plan is in place for the final area of their squad to be overhauled and upgraded over the next 12 months.
Michael Carrick will have some big decisions to make on his squad in that time period too, with a number of experienced stars entering crucial stages of their contract, which could see their futures at the club come into question.
Luke Shaw's £200,000-a-week contract at Old Trafford is set to expire at the end of this season, while Harry Maguire's contract is also due to come to an end once this season is over. Alongside them, Argentina star Lisandro Martinez's £120,000-a-week contract is currently due to expire next summer, but United hold the option to extend it by a further 12 months.
As a result of that, plus the injury issues that Matthijs De Ligt has been dealing with, left-sided defenders are being looked at as a priority, and according to Football Insider, Man Utd have already decided that their top target will be Tottenham star Micky Van de Ven.
The Dutch defender signed a new long-term contract at Spurs this summer, after flirting with the idea of leaving after two consecutive 17th-placed finishes in the Premier League.
But Spurs have started the season poorly once again and currently sit bottom of the table. Should that continue, it's possible that an exit could be looked at again, just like they did with Cristian Romero in the summer just gone.
The 25-year-old has been praised since coming to the Premier League, with former Spurs midfielder Jamie O'Hara describing him as "world-class".
"I think Van de Ven is a world-class player. Van de Ven is world-class. He would walk straight into Man City's team. He would walk into any team.
Van De Ven Could Replace Man Utd Pair
While Van de Ven has been a centre-back for the vast majority of his time in the top-flight, Man Utd could potentially use him in different roles.
The defender is at his best centrally, but for the national team he is regularly used in a more traditional left-back role, and that could make him an exciting option for Carrick at Old Trafford. With Shaw out of contract, and Martinez seemingly more likely to be on the move rather than stay beyond 2028, an experienced option for both positions is needed.
United could find a way to replace two experienced, first-choice stars with one player, thus saving money on an alternative in other positions to strengthen, and get the man they really want.