I think we should stay miles clear of any players that are underperforming in their current team, Utd at the moment is not the kind of environment that can reinvigorate these players.
Importance of the January 2020 Transfer Window
- Thread starter Zlatattack
- Start date
It isnt that important. We wont buy the players needed to compete for anything. People thinking we will go out now and buy 2 or 3 top players for 100m are in for a surprise. We may be some backup option for cheap and thats about it, someone like Mandzukic. And even if we wanted to buy more players, clubs will just ask silly money in January.
The whole January window importance comes only from the club being clueless in the summer, which wont go away in winter. Incompetence isnt seasonal. Ole will also be happy with the squad, he wont ask for players that arent available anyway. Rarely does a club turn it around in winter by transfers, or makes massive improvements by buying players.
The whole January window importance comes only from the club being clueless in the summer, which wont go away in winter. Incompetence isnt seasonal. Ole will also be happy with the squad, he wont ask for players that arent available anyway. Rarely does a club turn it around in winter by transfers, or makes massive improvements by buying players.
Haaland and Eriksson in January, Sancho, Maddison and a LB in the summer.
Why should he play? He isn't a true striker and injury-prone, and in genaral he is overrated.
He can be Haland's bakcup or if necessary play on the wing when Rashford or James aren't fit.
He is better than Rashford
Also Haaland would be a similar mistake to Lukaku. Great goal scorers but all round game lacking. We would need to have more creative wide players than Rashford and James for him to work
I disagree.
Rashford is better than Martial and has been much more effective than him lately.
Haaland is very different from Lukaku, he can seem slow beacause of his height but unlike Lukaku he moves a lot on the pitch, i would compare him more with Ibrahimovic than with Lukaku.
Also it doesn't make sense to play without a true striker unless you have a team that plays tiki-taka like Spain in 2010.
We need to play with a 4-3-3 due to our players features and Haland and Eriksen are what we still miss, it would be also a very balanced formation.
-------------------Haland--------------------
---Rashford-----------------------James----
------------Pogba--------Eriksen------------
-----------------McTominay------------------
Shaw-----Maguire-----Lindelof------Bissaka
-----------------De Gea----------------------
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My prediction is Mandzuikic and maybe Erikssen
We have clearly been more effective as a team with Martial in the side this season
So basically you think Haland is better than martial? Very interesting.
You've lost all credibility placing mctominay as the DM in a 4-3-3. He is clearly more suited to a box to box midfielder. Also rashford has not been more effective than Martial. He has only played more games. Dont confuse the difference. The team needs Martial more than it needs rashford.
If United have learnt anything from the Sanchez fiasco its to stay away from Eriksen for a variety of reasons.
OMG, i can't believe what i'm reading.
They are two totally different players and as a n.9 Haland is definitely more suited than Martial!
McTominay is developing as a box to box midfielder but he can play also as a DM. Unless you are a Matic fan there isn't any other player in the roster who can play as DM.
I know this is a risk but he is the only realistic signing we could make right now. We weren't able to take Bruno Fernandes during the summer, and i don't think that Maddison will go anywhere in January, so the only player who can provide us quality in the midfield is Eriksen. Then if we consider that Pogba could leave during the summer i would sign Eriksen now and try to take Maddison in the summer.
Your completely wrong mate. Martial has more skill than any of our forward line and Haaland and him up front, with Rashford out wide, is the best way to use all 3.
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We won't be signing anyone. If we can't do deals in the summer, what's makes people think we can do them during a extremely short period and where teams will probably get the same deal in the summer anyway. Half these guys being linked aren't playing regularly plus coming to a new team, you might not see any form until Feb/March anyway. It happens but it's rare it's successful in general.....
I think we will buy a midfielder, we might have a better chance to sign some players in January than we would in the summer when there will be more competition
Eriksen is still playing every game.
Fernandes is playing every game
Mousa Dembele is playing every game
Soumare is playing every game
Haaland plays every game
These are only some of the players we are presumedly interested in. Yes Mandzukic has not played but says he is still training hard.
Eriksen isn't and some of those players were available in the summer and we didn't think they were good enough then, so why do you think we'd sign them in Jan? Some of those are unproven in prem or completely out of form. It's makes no sense. Also which is a slightly different argument, I'm not sure they improve us anyway. On paper maybe but we all know without no structure, pattern of play or different styles of play....it doesn't matter who you sign.
Why a midfielder? We have lost games because of the midfield. Pogs comes back in that side makes a difference any and if he leaves in the summer, we aren't gonna sign his replacement in Jan....
Was having a debate yesterday with a Watford supporting friend, and we concluded that United need to start winning games and pull away from the bottom 3. Come January, if we're still down towards the bottom, your Watfords, Southamptons would be better placed to buy players to improve the team than us! Why? Because the level of player they're going for will be realistic for that task. We can't buy solid mid table premier league players, because whilst the sad truth is in some positions, like number 10, or left back, or central midfield, or right wing, that would strengthen us, we just can't go and buy such players. Our goals will be much higher. But the players we want to sign, Maddison, Haaland, etc etc are not going to want to join us in January. They won't want to join us in January anyway, so there's no point going for them, but in January if we're in a relegation scrap we won't be in a position to bring the players we need in. Unless we pay over the odds, panic gamble and spend ridiculous amounts of wages on the task. Sound familiar?
Actually, someone like Eriksen might be a good player in that he's not past it and would be relatively cheap and he's proven quality. But we turned down the chance in the summer because Ole wasn't convinced he wanted to make the move. So on a philosophical level, we'd be panicking and buying someone we withdrew interest from, and even if it worked out, it would still be a panic buy and one that proves we're not thinking things through.
The double whammy is because we're so bad, we have to pay more to bring players in, both transfer fees but especially wages because we're not in the champions league or even Europa next season, and everything gets exacerbated.
Gone off on a bit of a tangent, the point is I can't see who we can sign in January. Like not a single player that would want to join, that would make financial sense or make sense to the arriving player. Eriksen might make a bit of sense to us in some regard, but we'll be ridiculously expensive to the wage budget, and he'll be leaving an underperforming team for another under-performing team, but the latter paying him like 300k per week. In other words, for money only. not for footballing reasons. As for anyone else, they'll either be subs at their current clubs, aging and seeking one final contract and very expensive to the wage budget. No currently performing, high class player under 25 will even look at us.
Actually, someone like Eriksen might be a good player in that he's not past it and would be relatively cheap and he's proven quality. But we turned down the chance in the summer because Ole wasn't convinced he wanted to make the move. So on a philosophical level, we'd be panicking and buying someone we withdrew interest from, and even if it worked out, it would still be a panic buy and one that proves we're not thinking things through.
The double whammy is because we're so bad, we have to pay more to bring players in, both transfer fees but especially wages because we're not in the champions league or even Europa next season, and everything gets exacerbated.
Gone off on a bit of a tangent, the point is I can't see who we can sign in January. Like not a single player that would want to join, that would make financial sense or make sense to the arriving player. Eriksen might make a bit of sense to us in some regard, but we'll be ridiculously expensive to the wage budget, and he'll be leaving an underperforming team for another under-performing team, but the latter paying him like 300k per week. In other words, for money only. not for footballing reasons. As for anyone else, they'll either be subs at their current clubs, aging and seeking one final contract and very expensive to the wage budget. No currently performing, high class player under 25 will even look at us.
Don't think we'll be able to find a suitable striker or RW in Jan
What players would you be after in that role?
I agree with all you wrote. I think what we're sorely missing more than anything is what I'll call a 'catch-and-release' type central midfielder. A player that can receive the ball from any position on the pitch and quickly play positive and accurate passes into our front-line. That's the bedrock of a cohesive team because that consistency unlocks the potential of the forwards who can now have trust that their runs won't be for nothing and if they show for the ball they'll receive something of quality that puts them on the front foot rather than risks injury because the pass invited pressure from their marker. With that kind of consistent feeding, attacking patterns are developed over time because players can reliably predict what'll happen next and plan forward. It also allows us to get the absolute most out of Pogba who is better deployed in a more liberal, advanced role.
I really do think that kind of player is what we sorely lack, we've got the talent in attack to justify scoring more goals and moving up the table and we have one of the best defensive records in the league, we just need that player who can knit things together consistently and there's no one in the squad who can or even has the potential to do that. That's why I'm opposed to the Eriksen/ Maddison possibility unless it's definite that Pogba will leave because those players flourish moreso further up the pitch but it's at the half-way line we're desperately lacking.
Anyone good they'll want to keep, out of form still offers cover especially if the are still pushing for trophies and agree about maybe signing potential rather than waiting till the summer.
I never said we would sign them in January. I said These are the players we are PRESUMEDLY interested in.
Ole said we are interested in signing 2 players in January a Midfielder and a Striker, and these are only a list of players mentioned in the medias.
My own take on this is, IF we are lucky enough to be able to bring 2 players here in January it will be, Mandzukic and Eriksen, imo.
2 midfielders is vital in January. Worry about CF and other positions in summer.
We would get overrun in midfield nearly every game.
January will be our best chance to sign Håland, if we want the guy.
Erickson has made it patently clear he doesn't want to join utd but play in Spain. Chasing after him is the sort of idiotic thing Woodward will do as a vanity project, but doesn't actually benefit the team as we have seen in the past with poorly planned recruitment. This team is good enough to be top 6 with the current players, we just have a poor coaching team/manager to realise our potential. I certainly do not want to see Utd shelling out big transfer fees to attract players when, in all likelihood, Ole wont be here so best to stop this folly, make the managerial change then implement the transfer strategy.
That would be sensible option...but when was the last time common sense prevailed at OT?
That would be sensible option...but when was the last time common sense prevailed at OT?
Let's hope you are completely wrong. One thing Ole has done well is recruitment and let's hope he continues to search for players with real desire and right age.
Not sure with the bold? Ole said a lot of things that are not to see the light of day. We would not have to sign anyone if he played the young players and showed a little more trust in them, but that's a different argument.
Mandzukic is 33 and I think a deal is already done. I'm not saying I like it either.
Eriksen is still in his prime at 27 and is exactly what we want to improve Rashford, Greenwood, and Martial.
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Ok @Litch we will have to wait and see what happens in January. Sure there could even be a complete change by then.
IF Eriksen wants to come, the best chance to sign him would be in January. In Summer when his contract expires I can see lot if vultures circling around a free agent. But I cannot see Real,Psg or Juventus paying 40 million in January.
Apparently he has a verbal agreement with Levy to not sign for another EPL club but an offer of 40 m might change Levy s mind. It remains to be seen whether Eriksen would still want to wait till Summer so he gets an even better deal
Apparently he has a verbal agreement with Levy to not sign for another EPL club but an offer of 40 m might change Levy s mind. It remains to be seen whether Eriksen would still want to wait till Summer so he gets an even better deal
Forget Eriksen (assuming you’re on about the spurs player as you’re all spelling it differently 
), Haaland, Dembele etc - it’s January we’re just not going to land players like that easily. The focus needs to be on landing players in other positions.
If we’re going to throw the kitchen sink at any type of player it has to be a solid midfielder. Zakaria? M-Savic? Possibly Berge from Genk? Or even Declan Rice (although I don’t really rate him).
Have to be wise in January as it’s going to cost us a fortune.
), Haaland, Dembele etc - it’s January we’re just not going to land players like that easily. The focus needs to be on landing players in other positions. If we’re going to throw the kitchen sink at any type of player it has to be a solid midfielder. Zakaria? M-Savic? Possibly Berge from Genk? Or even Declan Rice (although I don’t really rate him).
Have to be wise in January as it’s going to cost us a fortune.
Why are some people conviced Eriksen will join us. And at the same time where does Eriksen think he will go. He wants to join Madrid but Madrid doesn't need him because they are going after Pogba not to forget that they have Odegaard along with Isco and James Rodriguez
LB & MF
I haven’t given up on the front line just yet, and I’d like to see how they perform with a better midfield behind them.
I haven’t given up on the front line just yet, and I’d like to see how they perform with a better midfield behind them.
I don’t have high hopes for the Jan window. It’s not the time most players would be willing to move.
You might be right.....
We definitely should be trying to bring somebody in considering we need to improve in so many positions. I am confident that we could get someone of good quality rather than a slight improvement. We are in a position to pay the extra 10-20% it may cost to sign them now rather than wait and considering our current position we should be very willing to do so. Yet I can't see it happening, makes too much sense.
Hasnt ole already said we won’t be doing any business in January?