Of course, transfer rumours are just that, and often in journalism there is smoke without fire. We have to take some stories with a pinch of salt, but some, by what has been confirmed or implied by club representatives, can be accepted as true, or at least, based on fact.
The press has generally reported all summer that Manchester United have spent their transfer budget on Andre Onana, Mason Mount and Rasmus Hojlund, so any further purchases will have to be funded by sales, especially as Financial Fair Play rules have to be considered.
However, a proper delve into United’s FFP standing reveals there is little to be worried about, especially when you consider that the club would have until the end of the financial year, June 2024, to balance the books. And that even if they weren’t balanced, the infringement would not be so serious as to merit a huge fine.
What is the transfer budget and how close are United to it?
United’s net spend so far in this window as per Transfermarkt is €153.86 million, or £131.96. A further £15 is imminent from the sale of Dean Henderson, which will become net £10 million with the £5 million purchase of his replacement, Altay Bayindir. This would bring the net spend for the summer to £121.96 – almost spot on the £120 million figure the club’s owners, the Glazers, had allocated, according to most reports.
So we’re good, then, it seems, so far. But where does that leave United in terms of further acquisitions? Erik ten Hag himself has said United are still looking to strengthen, and it doesn’t take a mind reader to figure out the positions in which he wants to add reinforcements.
Defensive requirements
First, injuries to Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia have left the manager looking for a left back, although a temporary loan would suffice.
United are exploring a few options here that will not affect the transfer budget too much, although Chelsea’s £7 million loan fee demand for Marc Cucurella could be too rich for United’s blood at this stage.
At centre back, Ten Hag also clearly does not rate Harry Maguire but would obviously want a replacement. Unfortunately, though, Maguire shot himself and United in the foot by turning down a £30 million move to West Ham a few weeks ago. The Hammers shopped elsewhere, and while Harry is now keen to leave after all and they are still keen to take him, their offer is now only for a loan. This does United no good at all unless they can loan a quality replacement in return. So unless a club comes in at the last minute with £30 million to put on the table, United are stuck with Harry for the time being.
Midfield requirements
The other area to strengthen is central midfield, where Scott McTominay and Donny van de Beek also seem to be surplus to requirements, but would need replacing. Reports of United’s interest in Fiorentina’s Sofyan Amrabat and Bayern Munich’s Ryan Gravenberch have refused to die down all summer, but no formal approach has been made.
We are told United must sell a midfielder before one is bought, but we are also told that United want a whopping £45 million for McTominay, effectively pricing him out of the market, and that the only offer on the table for Van de Beek, from Real Sociedad, is a loan.
But this is where the midfield situation differs from the centre back one.
There are reports – although not confirmed by any so-called “Tier 1” journalists – that Bayern Munich are interested in McTominay and would consider a loan exchange deal with Ryan Gravenberch going the other way.
If this is true, then why would United hesitate? It is perfect.
And other reports – although again, not with the rubber stamp of Tier 1 corroboration – claim that Fiorentina, desperate to offload an unhappy Amrabat, would accept a loan offer with option or obligation to buy. This, again, would surely be an ideal solution as it would require no outlay from United other than the loan fee and player’s wages.
What’s stopping United from acting?
And this is where something doesn’t add up. Even if the Glazers set a £120 million budget, surely that would have some flexibility? Why would the owners not allow some leeway, when there are world class stars like Amrabat and Benjamin Pavard, an ideal Maguire replacement who is now Inter Milan bound, who are available at around £25 million? Even Glazernomics would dictate that buying a player worth £40 million for £25 million would be a good investment.
Are the owners that inflexible, or has the club’s line of credit now really dried up completely? These surely aren’t amounts that a club of Manchester United’s stature should be incapable of finding.
And even if the budget really is that rigid, what is preventing United from pursuing the loan deals on offer for either or both of Ten Hag’s top midfield targets? The only possible explanations for this would be (a) loan fees are included in the transfer budget and even they are now beyond United’s means or (b) Ten Hag has also been given a salary budget and that has already reached its limit. And even those reasons don’t make sense if a McTominay-Gravenberch swap is really in the offing.
Of course, United’s total silence in incoming transfer dealings could simply be a ploy, waiting until the eleventh hour before they pounce on some last-minute panic sales. But other than that, it is hard to explain what on earth is going on at Old Trafford.
The fact is, with Cucurella, Amrabat and Gravenberch all available for loan, there is no obvious reason why United can’t give Ten Hag his dream ending to this summer’s transfer window.
The post Marc Cucurella, Ryan Gravenberch and Sofyan Amrabat: what are Man United waiting for? appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.
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