When former Southampton youngster Luke Shaw first made his all important switch to Old Trafford at the beginning of the season, many within the game largely saw it as a safe deal for Manchester United, and one that would surely pay off for Louis van Gaal in the not too distant future.
The 19-year-old left-back arrived at his new club after impressing fans of the Premier League throughout the 2013/14 campaign. Shaw seemed to utilize endless energy down the flanks, was equally as good at attacking as he was at defending – and although the former St. Mary’s favourite had only just burst onto the scene – even Roy Hodgson saw fit to reward the defender with a place in England’s 2014 World Cup squad.
Whilst the nation’s summer endeavours in Brazil hardly turned out positive for the Three Lions though, Luke Shaw’s addition in the team at such a young age nevertheless highlighted the extent of talent on offer for the rising star.
However, since life in the top flight of English football rarely plays out in the most ideal circumstances possible, the new man at Manchester United just hasn’t been able to produce the goods consistently enough for his manager this season.
In light of such developments, just how much of a gamble has Luke Shaw’s move to Old Trafford ultimately been for the historic Premier League club, as well as for the player himself?
Well one thing constantly burdening Louis van Gaal’s new no. 3 in his attempted rise to the top is the extortionate transfer fee that the Red Devils were forced to pay out for him. The overall cost for the former Southampton man was reportedly in the region of £27 – £30 million, despite the fact that the player himself has barely made much of an impact on the English game in the grand scheme of things.
Shaw faced complaints of being overweight in the run up to the 2014/15 campaign, has often looked out of his depth playing in the much more intimidating cauldron of Old Trafford, and has simply only performed to a fraction of what many within the game initially touted him as capable of so far for his new manager.
All of a sudden Luke Shaw appears to be not much more than an average talent – who whilst still being able to call himself a regular Premier League player – just hasn’t matched the status that first surrounded him upon arriving at Manchester United.
This whole affair highlights a much greater issue afflicting the English game at the moment however: English players are simply far too over-valued, and far too over-hyped in the modern era for their careers to play out naturally.
Yes, the up and coming young talent may still have a promising future ahead of him, obviously it’s far too early to write a player off who hasn’t even turned 20-years-of-age yet, and yes, injuries have certainly hampered the player’s Old Trafford career so far – but ultimately Luke Shaw was never even close to being worth the suspected £30million that United eventually paid out for him. It was day-light robbery even in the kindest of senses.
Other European talents seem to go for a great deal less than their English counter-parts. Aside from the odd superstars who command the type of transfer fees that just aren’t matched anywhere else, the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez cost their respective clubs a similar amount to what Luke Shaw went for – and when you consider that those two aforementioned stars are already in the peak years of their career – Manchester United’s expensive gamble on an 18-year-old Southampton player does seem a bit silly looking back.
Whilst it seems clear that the Red Devils simply weren’t shrewd enough when it came to landing Luke Shaw last summer, such discussion should have little effect on how the player himself approaches the next stages of his career. He is still young of course, still has a certain degree of potential left in him, and could still do a job for England when the right time comes. That much is certainly true.
As Luke Shaw simply looks nowhere near a £30million player however, maybe this once promising transfer was ultimately doomed almost as soon as the wheels were first set in motion – and that is a sad indictment on the English game above all else.
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