Manchester United: 5 Reasons Ashley Young Is a Terrible Signing

I recently saw an article, that had five reasons why Ashley Young was a great signing. Among these were Young's pace, shot, other attributes, and the fact that he's British.

I was immediately taken aback at how the author and several others do not get the bigger picture.

Without further ado, here are the five reasons why the Red Devils' signing Ashley Young made for an insignificant addition to the squad.

This is probably the most important reason, which is why I put it first. (It also lays the groundwork for the rest of the list.)

With Nani, Valencia, Park, and Giggs you wonder why United would waste their time on another winger and pay ₤17 million for a rotational player who is probably going to end up on the bench for most of the season.

Now, ₤17 million pounds for Ashley Young is quite a fair deal, but it still begs the question: Is it really worth having him on the team?

Sure, Ashley Young can help United if one of the wingers gets injured for an extended period of time, and there will not be much drop off in talent once he comes in.

But is he the kind of game-breaking player that will help United finally topple Barcelona (or even Madrid) if they were to face off or in the Champions League?

I think not.

Could United still win the Premier League without Young? I'm quite positive they could, especially since they are stacked at the winger position.

Young can undoubtedly play the attacking midfield position, but he thrives on the wing. Wouldn't it be better for United to pay for a young, natural CM or CAM?

Also, Young dosen't have that killer pass or touch that Scholes had, so he is a big step down from the former United legend. 

Let's turn our attention to Ashley Young's perspective.

He's a player that dreams of playing for England at the next World Cup—will going to United hamper his career by not allowing him to get enough playing time to be selected? Capello snubbed the winger at last year's World Cup, and he could, in fact, do it again.

There is no doubting that Young has the ability to be a key member of the English squad, considering he does have a few caps, but would it have been better for him to go play for say, Chelsea, Man City, or even the club that also wanted him, Liverpool?

He would be an instant starter for any of those clubs because those teams have excellent center midfields, but lack on the wings.

On the other hand, United has the best wingers in the Premier League, and it's safe to say that there's not much room for him to start unless United plan on selling Nani, which would be nonsense in my view since he is vital to United and is also younger than Young.

Ashley Young turns 26 next month, so it's understandable that his transfer fee was ₤17 million and not an over-inflated price as most British transfers are.

How many good years will he have left? Who knows?

He is definitely in his prime, but will his peak come sooner than expected?

Will he be the next Fernando Torres?

If Ashley Young is an investment for the future, then it's hard to really say that acquiring him was a good idea since both of United's starting wingers at the moment—Valencia and Naniare in fact more talented on the pitch and also younger.

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There is no doubt that the biggest weakness Manchester United had last year was in the middle of the pitch.

So far United have strengthened the two areas that they were consistent in all season long.

The CB and Wing position were strong primarily because United have such great depth on the bench. When Ferdinand got injured, Smalling was a stalwart on the pitch. When Valencia got injured, Giggs and Park would rotate the left flank.

United's first two purchases during the window were mind boggling, to say the least, in terms of team need, not player ability.

Manchester United's finances are limited, and the purchase of Young leaves less money for a CDM, CM, and/or CAM.

Now, I'm not saying ManU still won't get a center midfielder, but wouldn't it be best to stock up on two key center midfielders instead of one? I fear United will get a cheap center midfielder—which will not be enough to beat the likes of Barca and Madrid—instead of a Sneijder or a Modric,.