It was not supposed to be this way. “Clinical, impressive,” was the way one recruitment official described Manchester United‘s transfer business to i after Danish “rough diamond” Rasmus Hojlund was prised from Atalanta at the end of July.
You could see their point. After the Frenkie de Jong debacle last summer there was an air of authority about their work as they recruited from a position of relative strength.
Erik ten Hag had three non-negotiables entering the summer and, after midfielder Mason Mount and goalkeeper Andre Onana arrived, Hojlund represented the third box ticked. He might not have been Harry Kane but it still represented decisive work from a transfer committee apparently “all in” on Ten Hag’s blueprint.
Twenty-eight days is a long time in football, though. Now United are looking for an elite midfielder and left-back cover in the final few days of the transfer window while having to consider financial fair play (FFP) acrobatics as Harry Maguire and Scott McTominay remain at the club on super-sized contracts.
Such is the lack of confidence in Anthony Martial’s ability to shoulder the club’s goalscoring burden it would be advisable to move for another forward too. Manchester United pondered getting involved in the Brennan Johnson conversation earlier this summer but they have neither the time nor the FFP wiggle room to go toe to toe with Chelsea, Tottenham or Brentford in that particular battle.
Instead the onus is likely to fall on Hojlund to hit the ground running while football director John Murtough works on loan left-back options and securing a midfielder who can re-calibrate an engine room that has misfired since Mount was added to the mix.
The good news for United is that left-backs are plentiful in this window. While i understands ther is little to suggest Rico Henry will be joining them – Brentford are yet to receive even an enquiry from Manchester United – they would be pushing at an open door if they follow up interest in Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella or Barcelona’s Marcos Alonso.
Cucurella, floated to Newcastle United when they first enquired about Lewis Hall, has suffered an alarming fall from grace but has plenty of ability. As a short-term stop gap he would suffice, if Ten Hag really thinks he can’t cope for the next couple of months without either Luke Shaw or Tyrell Malacia.
Of more difficulty will be bringing in a midfielder given that is the most in-demand position of this transfer window.
Sources in Germany suggest there is an “open dialogue” around Ryan Gravenberch of Bayern Munich, who has been offered to Premier League clubs in the last fortnight. At 21 he needs minutes but the lack of movement so far indicates the terms might not be quite as appealing as the prospect of re-energising the career of a player tipped to one of Europe’s best when he left Ajax 14 months ago.
Most curious of all is Maguire’s situation in a year that concludes with a Euros that England are hoping to win. He is Gareth Southgate’s preferred centre-back option but won’t play regularly unless he leaves Old Trafford, an eventuality that looks increasingly unlikely.
With Maguire not agitating to leave and United only interested in a permenant move to bolster their FFP situation, an uncomfortable impasse seems almost certain to prevail until January. Southgate is a loyal man but he would probably prefer it if Maguire’s name appeared on a yellow ticker before Friday night.
There is at least certainty about the club’s goalkeeping position, with Dean Henderson heading to Crystal Palace in a deal worth £20m.
Turkey international Altay Bayindir will sign for £5m from Fenerbahce to compete with Onana in his place.
from Football - inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/lyoQrIz
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