Is this £17m man a good start to Manchester United’s summer spending?

According to Portuguese source, Record, Manchester United have already reached a Gentleman’s Agreement with Benfica to sign their talent defender, Ezequiel Garay.

He’s a player who has been on Sir Alex’s radar for some time. But with the ex-United boss moving on, questions were raised on whether this interest would transfer over to David Moyes.

Well, if we’re to believe the speculation, it has and he’s already started to make him move.

I would argue that the time is right for Garay to move on. He’s 26-years-old and (theoretically) is about to enter the best years of his career.

Despite his age, he’s already faced a number of disappointments in his footballing career. The first, will be his failure to make it at Real Madrid.

The Argentine centre-back joined the La Liga side back in the summer of 2009, but failed to make any real impact. He made just 31 appearances over two seasons and was forced to move away in order to earn regular game-time.

The club that he joined was Benfica. Since the move, his reputation has grown significantly, though he’s still had to put up with a number of disappointments.

Last season saw FC Porto snap the Primeira Liga title away from Benfica on the last day of the season. Benfica also suffered the indignity of losing to Chelsea in the Europa League final, through a last minute goal.

These events tend to play on a footballer’s mind. I wouldn’t be surprised if he were tempted to join a club like Manchester United; somewhere where success is more or less guaranteed.

As for Manchester United, I do feel that the club could use a player like Garay. Despite their strength at the back, Nemanja Vidic has well-documented injury problems and Rio Ferdinand isn’t getting any younger.

Given that there’s also a good chance that Phil Jones will end up as a defensive midfielder, it makes sense that David Moyes should start to weigh up his options.

£17m is a lot of money, but it’s a worthy price for a player who has come a long way over the last couple of seasons. With that in mind, Manchester United should go ahead and convert the ‘Gentleman’s Agreement’ into a real agreement.

He could be just what United need to help protect their title next season.

What’s your take? Is Manchester United signing Ezequiel Garay cause for celebration?

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