David Moyes needs a creative midfielder but Plan B may be too late for Manchester United Fabregas was clearly Plan A, which is why David pursued it for so long. I can only assume that United were given some encouragement that the deal would happen, but somewhere along the line, they have been let down. David would clearly have had a Plan B, however, and it appears as though Athletic Bilbao's Ander Herrera is the alternative to Fabregas. However, the worst thing that David could do on Monday is start panicking about United's failure to add to their squad this summer. If he panics, then that is the first sign of trouble, but he has to decide whether Plan B is what he wants to pursue after identifying somebody else as the best option for the majority of the transfer window. David has identified United's key area of weakness, though, by pinpointing midfield as the position he needs to strengthen. It is no surprise that he went after Fabregas. When he was at Arsenal, he was in the top three of technically gifted players in the Premier League - some would argue he was the No 1. He is the kind of player that can influence the biggest games, in the Premier League and Champions League, and he is durable enough to be able to do it week in and week out. United do not have that player who can play a killer pass in the final third, but they are extremely rare, which is why they are worth their weight in gold. Wayne Rooney has that ability to spot a pass but United's main issue at this stage is making sure that he is happy again at the club after an unsettled summer. Shinji Kagawa fits the criteria to a certain extent, but the jury is still out on the Japan international because he did not show it often enough last season. He is still attempting to get fully fit following a delayed start to pre-season and he missed three months of last season with injury, so there are still question marks over his ability to play the role that Moyes had hoped would Fabregas's. United certainly need to strengthen before the deadline today, though. Even great teams, when they have won a title, need to strengthen simply to keep themselves moving forward. Every position should be looked at and, if a better player is out there, they should be pursued. United won the title last season, despite not being a great side, so their need to add new players was there for all to see. Chelsea have strengthened, Manchester City have strengthened and so have Tottenham Hotspur and even Liverpool. United may get Marouane Fellaini in from Everton and he will give them height and another option going forward. Fellaini is about more than offering height and presence and he is somebody who could make a real difference in the final 20 minutes of games. Good player that he is, however, he is not what United need most right now. Having made their worst start to the season for five years, alarm bells are ringing at United. When I was at Liverpool, you could usually expect to play eight games before people started to have a go, criticise and find fault if things were not going as planned. That has all changed and, three games in, United have issues that they need to address and Moyes may not have time to deal with the key area in terms of getting a creative midfielder in. However, having won lots of games last season when they were not playing well, United have just played two games against big rivals and emerged with one point and no goals. United's spirit and will to win got them over the line many times last season, but eventually that will change and maybe the last two games have shown that that has already started to happen.