The large number of players linked to Manchester United in the last few weeks has been extraordinary. A hardened cynic, like this one, could not be blamed for thinking that the vast majority of them never had a hope in hell of ever going through yet there is something about the proposed move of Rafael van der Vaart from Real Madrid that seems to be a little different. A gut feeling if you like, that this time, the transfer could prove to be the real thing.

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