SOCCER: ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE:ASHLEY YOUNG immediately set his sights on helping Manchester United to a record 20th league title after becoming Alex Ferguson's second major recruit of the summer, joining from Aston Villa for a fee of about €16.9m.
Young signed a five-year contract to join Phil Jones, formerly of Blackburn Rovers, at Old Trafford and, with a deal in place for Atletico Madrid’s goalkeeper David de Gea, that means the champions have already committed themselves to €56m worth of transfer business this summer.
Ferguson is still hoping to add Luka Modric to the club’s payroll despite rival interest from Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur’s insistence that the player is not for sale, and a summer of change at Old Trafford could see up to 10 players leave.
Young chose United despite strong interest from Liverpool and his arrival will offer Ferguson more variety in attack, with the England international capable of playing as a left-sided attacker or a centre-forward.
“I am going to miss Villa – they have been fantastic and helped me along – but to have the chance to play for one of the biggest clubs in the world is one that I couldn’t turn down,” Young said.
“To come here and play with such great players and have the chance to be part of a team that hopefully wins a 20th title would be amazing.”
The 25-year-old described the moment when he was informed Ferguson wanted to bring him to Old Trafford. “You get a buzz inside. You get a great feeling that one of the greatest managers in the world wants to sign you and one of the greatest clubs in the world wants to buy you,” he said.
“As soon as I got the call, I wanted to get things sorted, get the papers signed and get back in to training.”
Young’s arrival places questions over the future of Nani, who has been giving renewed thought to leaving since losing his place towards the end of last season, culminating in his omission from the Champions League final.
“There is great competition for places,” Young said. “It’s always nice to know that if you are in the team there is someone snapping away at your heels. I just want to get myself in the team now. It will be a challenge but I am up to it.”
Villa’s manager Alex McLeish knew when he took the job that Young would be leaving. “Ashley has made a terrific contribution for Villa over the past four and a half seasons and everyone at the club wishes him the best for the future,” he said. “He has become an important player in the England team during that time and I’m sure he will be looking forward to this new challenge.”
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