Where are the United incomings?

I think the thing they have to ask themselves with January transfers is "Would you sign this player in the summer as well". If it's yes then go for it. If not then you kind of have your answer.

I guess the other argument is that the one player could help us get top 4, and if we miss out on CL those summer targets we're saving ourselves for become much harder.
 
I think the club doesn't want to spend money on what would be a stop gap signing. The players they really want aren't available yet. These players that a lot of our fans want and think are definitely better than what we have probably aren't. They'll just end up being more deadwood that we can't sell.

If we lost McT and Fred to injuries, we would be in serious trouble. I worry about that more than needing someone in that's better than them. We'd be relying on Matic and that isn't going to work.
 
It's pathetic that we have not strengthened our biggest weakness, considering we have Champs League coming up and even teams like Norwich can walk through the Midfield.

Granted, we can't sign a Rice in January, but there are better alternatives to what we have already.
 
choccy77 said:
It's pathetic that we have not strengthened our biggest weakness, considering we have Champs League coming up and even teams like Norwich can walk through the Midfield.

Granted, we can't sign a Rice in January, but there are better alternatives to what we have already.
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Can’t sign a Rice, don’t want a Pudding.

Tough to get right
 
Going into the second half of the season, when there are viable targets attainable in January seems really poor planning. I’m not saying he’s the answer, but take Zakaria as an example, available for £6-7m and can do a job if needed. Matic’s legs are gone, McFred can’t play every game, Donny is leaving on loan, and Pogba is about as reliable as Boris Johnson. We’re shooting ourselves in the foot by not bringing in a midfielder.
 
Ranchero said:
We all know that United are lacking in quality in midfield.

So why is it that we are preparing to lose three players on loan including two midfielders without a sniff on any incomings.

We played with two number 8s and one deep-lying midfielder in McT in the deserved win against West Ham.

But right now we have Martial, Lingard and Van De Beek going out the squad on loan without anyone coming in.

Quite how Lingard in particular is not seen as ahead of Fred as an 8 alongside Fernandes is beyond me. Lingard has goals and assists in him. Fred we all know, as the stats don't lie, does not.

In our weak midfield we will be left with 30something Mata and Matic whose best days are behind them and an unreliable Pogba.

Is this really seen as good enough in our battle for top 4.
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Hasn’t Ralf said that Hannibal will be included into the first team, along with Pogba returning aswell ?

Pogba and Fernades as the 8’s with McFred fighting for the 6 spot ? Matic and Hannibal as cover.
We do desperately need a DMC though going forward!
 
The Athletic are reporting that Rangnick had given his blessing for Lingard to leave. Board came in to play hardball over the financial side of departure.
Tottenham and West Ham ruled out due to competition position in terms of top 4.
We've also turned Everton for the same reason in the past, but apparently now open to sell/loan to them.
Newcastle got a demand of a £2.5m loan fee, wages to be covered and that £12m survival fee if they stay up.
Burnley also having a look at Lingard. Unclear whether they'd be taxed with a survival fee.

They also speculate whether Man Utd execs butting heads with Lingard's camp is playing a role, since Martial's loan fee was waived, but then again Martial with a positive loan spell can increase his value, and he's still got years on his contract.

Also this:
'Lingard has voiced his displeasure about their conduct to team-mates and the club must weigh up the wisdom of keeping a player around whose mood may not enhance the dressing room.'


Still feel we should've sold him to West Ham in the summer. Esp. since we triggered his extension with a view to a sale. Would've been a good deal for all parties.
I hope we let him go tbh. He's been at the club since he was 8. He's 29 now. Let him get on with his career.
 
DOTA said:
I am increasingly worrying the view is that we don't want to make signings whilst we have a temp manager, which would fair enough applied to major signings, but the thing we most urgently need is just an inexpensive option for DM. Like whoever a club the size of Southampton or Brighton would buy, 15-20m and 60k a week sorta thing, would be pretty likely to improve us.
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That sound you hear is the Glazerlings muttering as they collide with each other around the bagel-station in the boardroom each privately wondering 'is this what optimizing player influx index contra cash flow thing that Dick talked about I'd better pretend I know what's going on oh yes limit short term spending and maximize engagement metrics in a shift away from the previous model right yes of course big head nods yes of course I know what you're talking about I've only ever run three businesses into the ground'
 
Always hard to buy the right quality of player in January window. Glad that we are trying to trim the fat off a bloated squad. I dont see any players coming in as i think Richard Arnold as CEO from feb1st will want his first incoming signing for the summer window to be a big signing. Maybe declan rice for an exorbitant fee or something.
 
Uniquim said:
Also this:
'Lingard has voiced his displeasure about their conduct to team-mates and the club must weigh up the wisdom of keeping a player around whose mood may not enhance the dressing room.'
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theyve been doing this for years with Pogba wanting to leave, and treated Romero poorly over a few million who was the ultimate professional. Lingard holds no weight
 
Little bit more relaxed about this now that it seems Rangnick is getting more of a consistent tune out McTominay, players are being coached and know their roles better. We still need Pogba to come back and do well.
 
Uniquim said:
Still feel we should've sold him to West Ham in the summer.
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Extremely difficult, impossible almost, to sell a player to a club who never made a bid for them.
 
Bubz27 said:
Extremely difficult, impossible almost, to sell a player to a club who never made a bid for them.
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This isn't the smart technicality that those who keep repeating it think it is.

Clubs tend to always open a dialogue before bids are made, if it's not worth a bid they don't bother. We gave them the impression not to bother by all accounts in the media.
 
Smores said:
This isn't the smart technicality that those who keep repeating it think it is.

Clubs tend to always open a dialogue before bids are made, if it's not worth a bid they don't bother. We gave them the impression not to bother by all accounts in the media.
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That's true, but that also works the other way. Lingard would've known West Ham were in dialogue with United and he could've easily said he wants to go. Now we're badly run, but if a player explicitly said he'd like to go, I think we'd probably consider it.

It takes more than two to tango sometimes.
 
As much as a would love incomings, I think it's the right thing to do to sit tight. We've seen that there is enough quality there to get top 3/4 if Ralf gets a tune out of this squad.

And let's face it, if we had bought someone with a high risk of flopping (as there always is), fans would inevitably slate the club for being stupid enough to sign players of certain ilk that doesn't suit the new manager ideas.
 
Bubz27 said:
That's true, but that also works the other way. Lingard would've known West Ham were in dialogue with United and he could've easily said he wants to go. Now we're badly run, but if a player explicitly said he'd like to go, I think we'd probably consider it.

It takes more than two to tango sometimes.
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Sure but why would he if he was sold the line he might get game time at his boyhood club? I'm sure he was desperate to be a success here.

If we felt we needed him as a squad member and were willing to pass up the millions in transfer income for this benefit then fine. Disagree with that decision but at least it would have had logic, I'm just not sure that was the case.
 
Jacob said:
As much as a would love incomings, I think it's the right thing to do to sit tight. We've seen that there is enough quality there to get top 3/4 if Ralf gets a tune out of this squad.

And let's face it, if we had bought someone with a high risk of flopping (as there always is), fans would inevitably slate the club for being stupid enough to sign players of certain ilk that doesn't suit the new manager ideas.
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Why is it right to sit tight? We are crying out for a DM and Ralf has apparently made it clear to the board and is concerned at lack of backing If shift a bit more deadwood like Lingard and VBD, then the board need to back the manager, especially given the tight rice for fourth. Your post makes no sense
 
Really really frustrating window.

We desperately need that Midfield player but, we aren’t doing shit.

Liverpool have one of the best forward lines in the whole world, and they go out and improve it, even more.

Just shows, the level both clubs are on, at the moment.
 
Solius said:
I think the thing they have to ask themselves with January transfers is "Would you sign this player in the summer as well". If it's yes then go for it. If not then you kind of have your answer.

I guess the other argument is that the one player could help us get top 4, and if we miss out on CL those summer targets we're saving ourselves for become much harder.
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We could get someone on loan then. Unless the board doesn't want to back Rangnick.
 
yamo123x said:
Its a case of clear the wage bill before we can buy.

Ronaldo, Cavani, Martial, Lingard, Bailly, VDB, Pogba, Henderson,Mata, Matic...thats got to be close on 2mill a week in wages alone
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Okay, and how much exactly will it cost in wages and transfer fees to plug that gap in quality in the squad? £400m and £2.5m a week?

Glazers will love the idea of turfing out all of the high earners and putting faith in £30k a week Elanga et al :lol:
 
Our squad is too big anyway, we can afford to lose a few players and not really notice.

Agree with midfield looking light, but Pogba to come back soon (not everyone's cup of tea - certainly not mine either) as another option. Reality is that there doesn't seem to be many options available this window.

Why spend for the sake of it? That's been our problem for so long.
 
I didn't think there would be any. The squad is too big and we don't have a permanent manager.
 
Smores said:
Sure but why would he if he was sold the line he might get game time at his boyhood club? I'm sure he was desperate to be a success here.

If we felt we needed him as a squad member and were willing to pass up the millions in transfer income for this benefit then fine. Disagree with that decision but at least it would have had logic, I'm just not sure that was the case.
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Its obviously not a clear cut situation, one way or the other.

But to see us sign Sancho and then be sold a dream that you'll get your minutes was a bit naive, in my opinion.
 
eire-red said:
Our squad is too big anyway, we can afford to lose a few players and not really notice.

Agree with midfield looking light, but Pogba to come back soon (not everyone's cup of tea - certainly not mine either) as another option. Reality is that there doesn't seem to be many options available this window.

Why spend for the sake of it? That's been our problem for so long.
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Pogba is another who plays further forward ( when he decides to play) We need a replacement for Matic, now.
A CDM is needed most and have been for last 2/3 seasons.
 
I think the board are hoping that Rangnick can pull it out of the bag and that Pogba will stay fit and be a big boost to the team. Whether he will is another matter. There are only so many players a team can carry and do even remotely well.

That being said, Pogba setting up Ronaldo could be tasty. Big risk though IMO. Buying a player for even £40/50m isn't exactly crazy if you think they will improve the team and could be the difference between CL and not.
 
JuriM said:
We don't need to buy, just of the sake of buying. We need to set a standard of future football route first and then all quality on those areas of the pitch we are lacking - on paper we have a lot midfielders, just we don't know whether and how many of them will be rated by the new manager and what type of football he wants to play with them - so I doubt if we spend big on someone before.
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so true we say this every few years and even when it looks like an improvement has been made rerecruitment (Maguire, AWB, Donny)…it turns out nope it hasn’t…at least They looked steady recruits on transfer day. Hoping the new manager can set the tone going forward even if that means ultimately at the cost of his own future as manager here.
 
If United had cleared out Jesses, DVB, Pogba, Martial, Jones last summer, I wonder how different this season would have been in terms of the moral and performances.

I know Ole was limited, but it seems having certain players in the squad, caused a lot of the issues we have today.

The boards logic when it comes to business is perplexing and impossible to understand the logic in not letting players go and instead, renewing contracts for stupid money, or refusing to sell and getting zero back in return financially.

Signing a stop gap DM now, in comparison isn't going to cost a lot and could save our season, if we could make top 4 and win the FA Cup.
 
This team/squad is capable of finishing in the top 4, especially if Pogba comes back and gives us abit of life and variety in CM.
 
UnitedSofa said:
This place loves a shiny new toy.
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More like the board love a shiny new toy! They signed Donny and Amad for a combined 80m, Both have basically never started a game for us. Plus they signed Ronaldo 8 years too late. They absolutely love a big name or a signing to show off for social media.
 
We have a big squad but has everyone has said we lack midfield players. Not even just in terms of quality but numbers as well, I know McTominay and Fred aren’t well liked but if one of them gets a serious injury we’re screwed. Matic struggles to get through 90 minutes, Pogba has a poor injury record himself and who even knows what’s going on with VDB. I’m sure we’re not expecting to sign a big money midfielder in January but just another option would be helpful.
 
Still hopeful of us signing a DM in these last few days (Kamara/Zakaria) but if Hannibal gets promoted and Pogba returns, is it so necessary?

Options would be Mctominay, Matic, sometimes Fred as the '6' and Bruno, Pogba, Fred and Hannibal as the '8's... We'd be fine.
 
Robindinho said:
Still hopeful of us signing a DM in these last few days (Kamara/Zakaria) but if Hannibal gets promoted and Pogba returns, is it so necessary?

Options would be Mctominay, Matic, sometimes Fred as the '6' and Bruno, Pogba, Fred and Hannibal as the '8's... We'd be fine.
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Only Matic is a suitable 6 and he can barely finish a game these days. We can wait til Pogba leaves to sign another creative midfielder for sure but not getting in a DM would be risking top 4.

This team is certainly good enough to finish in the top 4 normally but from our current position it's very much in the balance.
 
I think they're gambling with top 4 as they're going to try and spend stupid money on Rice next summer and hope they can bring Garner back as the other midfielder and save money. It's pretty stupid given how cheap Kamara or Zakaria would be, and both can also play CB.

Now I'm not saying Kamara or Zakaria are worldies, but they are actual holding midfielders, something we don't have and something that would give our midfield a proper shape with one of them sitting and McTominay or Fred as a box-to-box #8 and Bruno as the offensive #8, instead of one of McFred being shoehorned into the holding role that they aren't any good at and constantly drift out of position. It's like right now with Elanga, it's not that he's more talented than our other wide players, his value is in that he keeps the width, plays for the team and gives us a better shape instead of trying to cut in and shoot all of the time.
 
dinostar77 said:
Always hard to buy the right quality of player in January window. Glad that we are trying to trim the fat off a bloated squad. I dont see any players coming in as i think Richard Arnold as CEO from feb1st will want his first incoming signing for the summer window to be a big signing. Maybe declan rice for an exorbitant fee or something.
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Yeah I agree right sort of players in January are not available but this year there's a few players out of contract at other clubs that can come in a strengthen areas especially midfielders now. Why cant we arrange a loan fee with these clubs now or small fee to bring them in now. 2 lads mentioned is Zakaira and Camara surely they fit the mould in what Rangnick is looking for in midfield. High energy. Its at point now that once Mctominey is not available were in trouble. Matic can't play the role hasn't the legs showed against Villa in 2nd half. Pogba won't when back as not disciplined plus his head is else where for next season.

I don't agree with big signings anymore Hasn't worked out well for club. We have bought shite over last few seasons for big fees Maguire, Wan Bisaka, Sancho so far, VDB, Pogba. Think we need to move on now and buy players that will fit a system we are going to play.

If Ragnick stays then very important we buy new full backs. As it looks like its Dalot and Telles is his 1st choice at moment and we buy upgrades for central midfield. High energy and can pass a ball. New Centre forward needed. Cavani goes in the summer and Ronaldo throw a strop if we don't get top 4.

Have to give Liverpool hats off to recruitment. Looks like there bringing in Diaz from Porto who fits the mould of their front 3 already. Jota was good business as well. Players that fit their system.

We need to move on from big name signings I think.
 
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