Not a bad window at all. We have trimmed some of the excessive fat. If the loans are sucess we can either increase our transfer budget in the summer by selling them or get those players back as new signings. However, where we finish will be the best indicator of how we did this wondow. If are in CL, we did well. If we are out of it, then, well, we have probably underinvested.
Rate our January window
- Thread starter Bastian
- Start date
We trim the squad down. It was a big squad to begin with. I like the idea of squad depth but quality over quantity. No point having quantity if they are not being used due to not good enough or suitable for the system. If they are not playing then it will only cause headache for manager and potential losing the dressing room. I never expect a new signing in January anyway.
Meh, 5/10
Good to trim the fat a bit but still think we’re short in midfield and the Greenwood shit has really spun us out, not just for now, for next season too.
Good to trim the fat a bit but still think we’re short in midfield and the Greenwood shit has really spun us out, not just for now, for next season too.
Would have been 7/10 if Greenwood didnt act demickey.
7/10
Players who need loan time getting loans, no panic buys or throwing money at players - last year we'd have paid the reported £80m for Haidara or made fools of ourselves throwing money at Mbappe when he's never going to come here. It seems like we might actually have a plan, that or we're broke.
Players who need loan time getting loans, no panic buys or throwing money at players - last year we'd have paid the reported £80m for Haidara or made fools of ourselves throwing money at Mbappe when he's never going to come here. It seems like we might actually have a plan, that or we're broke.
I dont see how a window can be good when people are saying after it, without irony, we can play Mata on the wing and Jones in midfield.
0/10
0/10 we desperately need dm, even a cheap stop gap one. And couldn't even do that.
In hindsight, Amad to Rangers was a mistake...
Let´t hope we won´t see much injuries.
Let´t hope we won´t see much injuries.
Which means Rangnick did it and not Ole.
Solid 1/10. Bought no one, didn’t dispose of Jones, Mata, Lingard, Henderson.
0/10
So we’re loaning out halve of our squad and signing nobody. We’re still in the fa cup, champions league and aiming for top 4 yet we’ve trimmed our squad down quite a bit. Why did we not go in for zakaria? He’s just joined juventus for so cheap aswell. Surely he’s better then what we have?
1. The manager said we weren't bringing anyone in so expectations managed
2. If we get a new manager in the Summer he will want to shape the squad how he wants which makes sense
3. Players sitting on benches need to play for a variety of reasons and they weren't getting it here so loans out are all good
4. Historically we have been criticised for letting players go so cheaply. We've done well to cover all wages and not have other clubs take the piss
5. One or two others might have gone out on loan but didn't.
Why wages worries so many is beyond me.
8/10
2. If we get a new manager in the Summer he will want to shape the squad how he wants which makes sense
3. Players sitting on benches need to play for a variety of reasons and they weren't getting it here so loans out are all good
4. Historically we have been criticised for letting players go so cheaply. We've done well to cover all wages and not have other clubs take the piss
5. One or two others might have gone out on loan but didn't.
Why wages worries so many is beyond me.
8/10
Hard to rate it. We're worse off than we were before it but keeping players who don't play is pointless and bad for morale. By sending these players off on loan we will be able to judge them better and if they perform well, either we can decide to keep them or they will improve their resale value, so win-win in that respect. Of course, if they play badly then the reverse is true but I'm not sure how much 6 months will do to their resale value compared to just sitting on the bench anyway. A thinner squad now means everyone should play, so there should be more togetherness. Also, hopefully, we're gonna get to see what Hannibal can do.
Had we signed Zakaria or brought in a loan midfielder, it would've been a decent window. As it is, it's just about ok.
Had we signed Zakaria or brought in a loan midfielder, it would've been a decent window. As it is, it's just about ok.
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Would have said it was an ok window before what happened with Greenwood. We got loans for some players who desperately need football and hopefully someone like DVB can come back better for the loan and contribute next season. However with Greenwood now seemingly permanently gone from the club then it has been a bit of a disaster to be honest. He was probably our best performing attacking player this season and, while I'm glad he is facing consequences for his awful behaviour, not having a performing player to play in place of him is really going to damage the rest of our season. We are now entirely dependant on Rashford and Sancho hitting the type of form they have been nowhere near achieving this season. My only hope is that the 2 of them are more than capable of that form ability wise but I seriously doubt that will be the reality.
Would give it a solid 6/10. Happy with all of the outgoings and would have been happier still with Jesse and Hendo gone but you can't have everything. I never thought we were ever going to sign someone so I am really not fussed about that, don't think anybody that was available would have made much difference to us to be honest and probably better to plan a proper window in the summer.
Only thing I am unhappy about was that we apparently screwed up the paperwork for D'Mani Mellor's loan to Crawley Town. It might seem insignificant but the lad has a few months left on his deal and we are clearly not extending him so this was his chance to join a League Two club and play senior football to potentially earn a contract somewhere next season. I always want us to take good care of our youngsters and it looks like we really dropped the ball on this one.
Only thing I am unhappy about was that we apparently screwed up the paperwork for D'Mani Mellor's loan to Crawley Town. It might seem insignificant but the lad has a few months left on his deal and we are clearly not extending him so this was his chance to join a League Two club and play senior football to potentially earn a contract somewhere next season. I always want us to take good care of our youngsters and it looks like we really dropped the ball on this one.
1/10. Only decent bit of biz done was knowing that muppet Eddie is gone. As far as the window goes, they basically brought in enough to cover the dividends paid out to the owners. As usual, short sided business decisions that did nothing to bolster our shambolic midfield but did undermine the manager. We may just barely stumble into 4th place but we're as likely to finish top of mid table and out of Europe completely. The ONLY way we will EVER improve is when these parasites LOSE MONEY. I won't spent one cent that goes towards this club until real change occurs. Feck the Glazers.
When i think of "trimming some fat" I think more about getting rid of Mata, Matic, Jones, etc., and not Martial and VDB but alright. 2/10
3/10 we cleared out (albeit temporarily) some of the unhappy players who were probably dragging the mood down. But that was really only half the job, if we could have managed to just get one more abled body even in midfield then I'd probably go to 7/10. 8/9 out of ten would have been if we'd got in a couple of signings and managed to get rid of the rest of the players who clearly wanted out for now even such as Jesse, Henderson and Jones.
I mean irrespective of whether or not you think we should have signed this player now or waited for that player in the summer I think they missed a trick even in terms of getting someone in just to freshen things up a bit in the squad to light a fire under some players and also to appease the fan base, both of which would have helped a lot to bring a bit of enthusiasm around the place if the next few fixtures dont turn out so good.
I mean irrespective of whether or not you think we should have signed this player now or waited for that player in the summer I think they missed a trick even in terms of getting someone in just to freshen things up a bit in the squad to light a fire under some players and also to appease the fan base, both of which would have helped a lot to bring a bit of enthusiasm around the place if the next few fixtures dont turn out so good.
Jesus, cannot believe this is even a thread. Even more mind numbing, we have some who are saying it was a good window.
The whole idea behind running a football club is to actually get better. We didn’t do that, and you can argue we got worse with the Mason shitshow, and the loan deals for Martial, Diallo, VdB
How you can go into a window with no plans to strengthen, even in areas where we know we aren’t good enough…? Feck me. I’m not sure I’ve ever been so pessimistic about our future. We aren’t making the CL fellas. We aren’t getting Haaland, Cristiano is going to leave, and be prepared for an underwhelming hire as a permanent manager.
0/10. What the hell are we doing?
The whole idea behind running a football club is to actually get better. We didn’t do that, and you can argue we got worse with the Mason shitshow, and the loan deals for Martial, Diallo, VdB
How you can go into a window with no plans to strengthen, even in areas where we know we aren’t good enough…? Feck me. I’m not sure I’ve ever been so pessimistic about our future. We aren’t making the CL fellas. We aren’t getting Haaland, Cristiano is going to leave, and be prepared for an underwhelming hire as a permanent manager.
0/10. What the hell are we doing?
0/10
We are stuck with players we don't want. And now there is an increased risk of a Pogba contract extension.
We are stuck with players we don't want. And now there is an increased risk of a Pogba contract extension.
5/10.
I wasn’t expecting any significant incomings this window. A bit disappointing but expected.
We still have enough quality to finish at least 4th which would not be that bad given the way we were before RR was appointed.
Expecting at least 3 big buys next summer though.
I wasn’t expecting any significant incomings this window. A bit disappointing but expected.
We still have enough quality to finish at least 4th which would not be that bad given the way we were before RR was appointed.
Expecting at least 3 big buys next summer though.
-5/10.
Exactly, didn't ship out any of the hangers on, only exciting players who can contribute. Due to circumstances we definitely need to bring back one of Martial/Amad.
This is the key point.
I understand all the 0 and 1 scores. After all, "We are Manchester United"
But in truth we're in a heap of shit that Ralf's predecessor created and it wasn't all going to be solved in this transfer window. We've trimmed the squad of players who were getting no playing time and although we didn't bring in a top CDM, there was no top CDM to be had right now. There was no other CDM available right now who would displace the players we already have.
Once we got spanked hard in the PL before Ralf arrived, the only realistic goal for the remainder of the season was securing a CL spot. We're somehow back in the hunt for that with the players that we have. It would have been counterproductive to bring in a player who would serve on the bench behind McFred.
We cleaned out most of the deadwood, except for Lingard and Jones. Lingard may just get some minutes. As for Jones, he actually put in a decent shift against Wolves and it's no harm to United that he remains on the squad, just in case, through the end of the season.
But above all, no panic buys. No Fellainis, no Matas, no Donnys (a good player, but obviously shit in training) and no new headcases for Ralf to deal with.
Given the situation we're in -- 7/10 is about right.
Terrible.
People are happy that we 'trimmed' the squad.
Martial, Amad and DVB.
I'd rather have them in the squad than Lingard (who will be going for free), Mata, Matic, Jones etc. We basically trimmed our bench, so now we have a very shitty bench. We're back to 2 years ago and a Cavani/Rashford injury away from a disaster.
They'll all be back in the summer anyway.
In fact, the only players that are guaranteed to leave in the summer (for free) are still with us.
Why not keep DVB and take the 4mill loan fee for Lingard from Newcastle ? No attempt to sell Pogba ?
Greenwood (deservedly) being banned by the club was the cherry on top of a very shitty January. I don't know how anyone can think otherwise.
0/10.
People are happy that we 'trimmed' the squad.
Martial, Amad and DVB.
I'd rather have them in the squad than Lingard (who will be going for free), Mata, Matic, Jones etc. We basically trimmed our bench, so now we have a very shitty bench. We're back to 2 years ago and a Cavani/Rashford injury away from a disaster.They'll all be back in the summer anyway.
In fact, the only players that are guaranteed to leave in the summer (for free) are still with us.
Why not keep DVB and take the 4mill loan fee for Lingard from Newcastle ? No attempt to sell Pogba ?
Greenwood (deservedly) being banned by the club was the cherry on top of a very shitty January. I don't know how anyone can think otherwise.
0/10.
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Its not much of a clear out, its one player that we don't need in Martial.
Also just to add:
If Martial, DVB and Amad perform very well for those teams and we don't finish top 4 it's going to make it a hell of a lot worse than it already is which is a 0/10.
If Martial, DVB and Amad perform very well for those teams and we don't finish top 4 it's going to make it a hell of a lot worse than it already is which is a 0/10.
This is a bit of a cop out but I think it's better to grade this window after the summer transfer window is done.
Said this in a different thread. We've been scammed into thinking that moving players out is an absolute plus. It's only a plus if those resources are redirected into recruiting better players or investing in other aspects of the club and the evidence in favor of that so far is at best mixed.
Clearly we needed midfield reinforcements but didn't get any. Even if we've freed up space for younger players, it's not clear to me that they'll be given a realistic chance to impress given how much a fight we have on our hands. Let's see what we do in the summer.
Said this in a different thread. We've been scammed into thinking that moving players out is an absolute plus. It's only a plus if those resources are redirected into recruiting better players or investing in other aspects of the club and the evidence in favor of that so far is at best mixed.
Clearly we needed midfield reinforcements but didn't get any. Even if we've freed up space for younger players, it's not clear to me that they'll be given a realistic chance to impress given how much a fight we have on our hands. Let's see what we do in the summer.
Pretty poor. The only unlikely hope is lingard comes back rejuvenated now that he should get some game time given what’s going on at the moment with other attacking players. But that’s really clutching at straws. Very uninspiring.
Exactly. I'd imagine it's also about changing our image, most rival fans, players, agents etc. see us as a bit of a joke right now. We've spent enough to have outperformed everyone but City and a lot of big name players have come to OT and really struggled because there simply hasn't been a plan. We have an interim manager so what's the point of buying players right now? Who would actually want to come who wouldn't have better offers elsewhere?
We have a huge tranche of players naturally leaving us this summer, some of our biggest names and most experienced/expensive will be gone. A lot of wages will be off our books. Aim now is try for CL and let's see if Elanga, Hannibal etc. might actually be good enough as well. We will have a big summer, I have no doubts on that.
Other than going all in for Rice (whose signing will be no sure thing,) I see us sitting on our hands and treating the return of DVB and Amad like new signings. One thing is definitely for sure: if we go into next season with the same midfield as we have now, there can be justification for it.
Anyone deluding themselves that we'll somehow pull out all the stops in the summer is deluding themselves.
The league starts early, we are slow and a new manager will have to reassess players YET again.
We've been Arsenal'd and still some of you think we're on the cusp of some change at the club.
Meanwhile Rangnick was not allowed to send Jessie 'sulky 30-year-old toddler' Lingard on loan because the money men have the final say.
The league starts early, we are slow and a new manager will have to reassess players YET again.
We've been Arsenal'd and still some of you think we're on the cusp of some change at the club.
Meanwhile Rangnick was not allowed to send Jessie 'sulky 30-year-old toddler' Lingard on loan because the money men have the final say.
6/10
Would have been higher if we'd got Jones, Pogba and Lingard out the door as well.
Would have been higher if we'd got Jones, Pogba and Lingard out the door as well.
Outgoings - not bad. With Greenwood gone, Martial might have expected more time on the pitch but that's too bad.
Incoming - Crap. Was expecting something to happen to bolster the midfield.
Incoming - Crap. Was expecting something to happen to bolster the midfield.
Good window, didn`t buy any shit players and give them big money contracts so we get stuck with them when we realise how shit they are.
A lot of good points but we failed to strengthen a squad that will struggle to get top 4 and have not won anything in ages. How that can get a rating above 4 is very difficult to understand. Maybe there was no top class CDM available but our midfield fail to dominate most teams in the PL so any decent midfielder would do such as Bruno who signed for Newcastle. We are a shambles on all possible levels and we prove it on a weekly basis.
I don't think we need a huge amount of signings to be honest but it will be so much easier to see where we need to strengthen when we have a manager in place who has a set way of playing. If we do get a manager who wants a specialist DM, I hope we don't go anywhere near Rice personally given how ridiculously overpriced he is.
Tough to bring in stop-gap players with an interim manager you know will be gone in 6 months. I understand the thought, although I can't see why we weren't interested in Zakaria for such a small fee, at worst he's an instant upgrade on Matic.
I'm more annoyed at our insistence on loaning everyone instead of being willing to actually sell players.
I'm more annoyed at our insistence on loaning everyone instead of being willing to actually sell players.