Louis van Gaal has said he wants to bring ‘multi-functional’ players to Old Trafford rather than ‘specialists’ who operate specifically in a certain position.

United have been linked extensively to Kevin Strootman and those rumours have escalated since Roma were knocked out of the Champions League last week.

Van Gaal seems to have a preference for players who can perform in more than one role over players he calls ‘specialists’ and after the signings of players such as Marcos Rojo and Daley Blind, he has followed through with his belief.

It is also a trait Sir Alex Ferguson had at Old Trafford, regularly buying and selecting players who could play in multiple positions including the likes of John O’Shea and Park Ji-Sung, as well as Wayne Rooney.

“I like multi-functional players and I normally buy more of them than specialists,” Van Gaal told MUTV.

The club have kept their cards very close to their chests regarding any purchases in January but both van Gaal and Ed Woodward have said the club wouldn’t buy players for the short-term to solve an injury crisis.

However, United have been continuously linked with a number of centre-backs given the constant injuries to current players and it remains to be seen whether or not the manager will swoop to strengthen his squad next month.