I agree that our squad isn't that bad, but it definitely needs some reinforcing on the front line. Not to beat a dead horse, but I think we all agree now that Rooney is a spent force, but given his massive contract I have no idea what we can do about him. Can Mourinho inject new life into him? I hope so but maybe he's a lost cause now.
On paper, Martial/Rooney/Memphis seems like a pretty impressive front line but in reality it's been a horror show. The immediate question for Mourinho -- should he accept this mission -- is whether he commits to making those three work or whether he goes into the transfer market. I'm pretty sure he would.
But we also need a top CB, don't we? Of course we do and I'm sure Mou would agree.
Based on the Mourinho I've seen over the last decade I'm pretty sure he would see what most us here see, that we need a CB and a striker at the very least. Some here argue for a right winger though for me that's a lesser need as I can see how Lingard, Januzaj and even Memphis could develop into very decent right wingers (it's not working on the left for Memphis). Others argue that other positions needs upgrading. Point is, the squad really does need at least 2, possibly, 3 or 4, reinforcements.
Where we're weakest IMHO -- and I like to think I'm not alone in this assessment -- is in our (in)ability to create and score goals. Our defending overall has been outstanding considering the injury crisis, except for set piece defending. We do what LVG orders in the middle third, but we're woeful in the last third.
Jose would have to understand what he's getting into were to he to succeed LVG. He has to know that the club's supporters are desperate for attacking football. I actually have very little doubt that he would respond to the masses and give us what we want -- attacking football backed up by a solid back line and the world's top keeper.
Our options with Rooney would seem to be
shifting his wages to China/MLS/Russia/Turkey etc. OR
buying out his contract OR
keeping him on as a starter OR
keeping him on, with his understanding, as a squad player
The easiest option you would think is the first one, but there are few if any clubs that will fork out that kind of money for a declining player, unless they want some expensive publicity. So we would have to sell Rooney to these clubs as a PR tool that would help bring exposure to their club and league.
The squad option would be insane considering the amount of money we'd be paying him and that his impact from the bench would be minimal. Since Rooney seems to need hundreds of minutes for getting back into any kind of form again he'll be useless as an impact sub/spot starter and, anyway, he won't tolerate sitting on the bench. The issue of Rooney seeming to be undropable as a starter pretty much kills that idea.
So if we can't sell, do we just hope that Mourinho revives his career as a starter? I don't think we should be taking that chance. Even if Rooney somehow comes back to life and scores 20+ goals, in all likelihood it will only be for a couple of seasons and we are back to where we started. As much as I like him, we are in a no-win position by keeping him on. He will get in the way of another striker taking the first position in the squad and we run the risk of watching him stink up the place for another season.
So what option does that leave us? Will we be forced to try to negotiate a buyout package with Rooney because we can't keep him but also can't move him?
The problem up front is that Martial is still very young. We know his talent but we need to bring in a reliable 20+ goal striker who can provide him offensive support and take the pressure off of him until he's of age to be the outright main player up front (though you can argue he already is). Memphis I think will come good, but again, he has carried too much of a burden since he's joined the team and needs to be in more of a support/secondary attack role.
Having said all that, I think the first player we need to sign is a top CB. This playing Blind on the left all season has been nothing short of ridiculous. The new CB needs to be a good handler of the ball who can make up for Smalling's shortcomings. Hummels was being name-dropped for a while last season. I don't mean we should get him but someone of that ability.
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