What do we still need? Aka The never ending story

[MrSingh2002]

Sometimes I wonder how our scouting/procurement could be so bad. We see top young talent always going to clubs like Atletico, City, PSG, Bayern etc.

United really need to sort their shit out. If Ole is to be successful here he'll need to do alot better than previous managers and also better than he's done previously himself.

Takes more than an 11 to win a league. Still not over the fact he gave Jones a new deal.

Jones should have been the first CB out of the door closely followed by Rojo unless he has fully recovered from his injury.

OUT
Jones
Darmian
Valencia
Sanchez
Lukaku

IN
CB De Ligt Ajax/Top young CB
RB Pereira Leicester/Experienced RB
CM Neves Wolves/Partner Matic and can play in a 2 or 3
RW Sancho Dortmund/Potentially world class winger
ST Jimenez Wolves/Mobile bigman

£200m to mount a challenge next season in the League. Why not when we've spent more buying duds?

 

[Hugh Jass]

Sometimes I wonder how our scouting/procurement could be so bad. We see top young talent always going to clubs like Atletico, City, PSG, Bayern etc.

United really need to sort their shit out. If Ole is to be successful here he'll need to do alot better than previous managers and also better than he's done previously himself.

Takes more than an 11 to win a league. Still not over the fact he gave Jones a new deal.

Jones should have been the first CB out of the door closely followed by Rojo unless he has fully recovered from his injury.

OUT
Jones
Darmian
Valencia
Sanchez
Lukaku

IN
CB De Ligt Ajax/Top young CB
RB Pereira Leicester/Experienced RB
CM Neves Wolves/Partner Matic and can play in a 2 or 3
RW Sancho Dortmund/Potentially world class winger
ST Jimenez Wolves/Mobile bigman

£200m to mount a challenge next season in the League. Why not when we've spent more buying duds?

It is not really that bad. We got Martial and also saw Pogbas potential. You are taking a chance signing young players. You dont know their mentality or you dont know if they will just turn out to be lazy like Adnan was. Bayern spent big on Sanchez and he has been terrible despite numerous people saying he would be world class.

The Messi's and Ronaldos out there are like finding a needle in a haystack.

I agree though. Jones should have been sold, at least because he keeps getting injured.

 

[Canagel]

We need something very similar to Liverpool last season. A wide goalscorer (Salah), a top drawer CB (VVD) and a full back (Robertson)... A versatile midfielder on top (AOC) would be the cherry on the cake.

I said as much in another thread. It's really sad the same summer Salah moved for 43m we splash 75m on Lukaku. We should be able to find player that will make same impact without needing to spend 90/100m and help us build a team across several positions

 

[ForestRGoinUp]

No way do we need five or six players. We cannot keep replacing players if they have a bad performance. We will never have a settled team if we do that.

Three or four players max.

We won't keep our best players if we don't put better players around them and start winning big trophies. There's a harsh reality that no one really wants to admit about the ability of this squad as a whole. It is much closer to Arsenal than it is to City. Players from around Europe won't think of anyone other than Pogba as being someone they'd be drawn to playing with. Like it or not, that's a significant part of recruitment for players. They aren't stupid and they know that it will take many top class players, not just 1 and a goalie, to win major trophies

Our attack of Martial, Rashford, Lingard - promising though it may be - is not an attack you go into a PL season thinking you'll win the title with. Martial just folded up like a lawn chair the other night when presented with the chance to shine in front of his home country supporters. His game is one dimensional and has shown little sign of developing beyond what everyone knows he can already do. Lingard is an effective role player but couldn't step in to make up for lost output should Martial/Rashford go down (as Son is doing for Spurs). Rashford is fun and exciting, but his game is still (obviously) immature. At their current levels, I believe only 1 of these 3 players would be starting for a PL contender because they would be surrounded by better, more experienced players. The others would be squad players. Let's not even get into our actual squad players.

Our midfield, as currently constructed, would only be a PL contending midfield if it had an elite defense behind it AND an elite attack in front of it. This is how Liverpool is built. Player for player, you'd look at their midfield as the weak link technically (even though it is their engine), but they are surrounded by quality. You might not see our midfield as the weak link, but I think that's more down to us not having a single standout group in defense, midfield, or attack. So it all just blends to look like something decent. We can go down that road with the midfield and stick with Herrera level players alongside Pogba, sure, but then you'd have to concede that both the attack and the defense need overhauling. There is ZERO depth behind our starting midfield, and two of our starters would only be here for depth if we had a title contending squad.

Our defense is probably a joke around the league and Europe. It's a little bit embarrassing to watch our fullbacks play and think, "Wow, they are actually wearing Manchester United shirts."

At the very least, the following will be needed over the next 2 summer windows:

ST
RW
CM
CDM
LB
CB
RB

*This is only my opinion, and I reserve the right to be called an idiot by the faithful fans on here.

 

[Hugh Jass]

We won't keep our best players if we don't put better players around them and start winning big trophies. There's a harsh reality that no one really wants to admit about the ability of this squad as a whole. It is much closer to Arsenal than it is to City. Players from around Europe won't think of anyone other than Pogba as being someone they'd be drawn to playing with. Like it or not, that's a significant part of recruitment for players. They aren't stupid and they know that it will take many top class players, not just 1 and a goalie, to win major trophies

Our attack of Martial, Rashford, Lingard - promising though it may be - is not an attack you go into a PL season thinking you'll win the title with. Martial just folded up like a lawn chair the other night when presented with the chance to shine in front of his home country supporters. His game is one dimensional and has shown little sign of developing beyond what everyone knows he can already do. Lingard is an effective role player but couldn't step in to make up for lost output should Martial/Rashford go down (as Son is doing for Spurs). Rashford is fun and exciting, but his game is still (obviously) immature. At their current levels, I believe only 1 of these 3 players would be starting for a PL contender because they would be surrounded by better, more experienced players. The others would be squad players. Let's not even get into our actual squad players.

Our midfield, as currently constructed, would only be a PL contending midfield if it had an elite defense behind it AND an elite attack in front of it. This is how Liverpool is built. Player for player, you'd look at their midfield as the weak link technically (even though it is their engine), but they are surrounded by quality. You might not see our midfield as the weak link, but I think that's more down to us not having a single standout group in defense, midfield, or attack. So it all just blends to look like something decent. We can go down that road with the midfield and stick with Herrera level players alongside Pogba, sure, but then you'd have to concede that both the attack and the defense need overhauling. There is ZERO depth behind our starting midfield, and two of our starters would only be here for depth if we had a title contending squad.

Our defense is probably a joke around the league and Europe. It's a little bit embarrassing to watch our fullbacks play and think, "Wow, they are actually wearing Manchester United shirts."

At the very least, the following will be needed over the next 2 summer windows:

ST
RW
CM
CDM
LB
CB
RB

*This is only my opinion, and I reserve the right to be called an idiot by the faithful fans on here.

I am sorry but this is fantasist stuff, as if Walter Mitty was analyzing our team. Martial is very good. Could have done better last night alright, but he is still good. We could do what you say and sign a whole new defense, midfield and attack, and then two years later you will be saying we need a complete overall again. Like i said, we cannot keep replacing player after player. We have to have faith in them. The other thing as well is the league is fiercely competitive. Chelsea won the league and then came fifth i think because you have six teams going for one position. If it were any other league Spurs would have at least a Title and City under pep would probably win a three in the row. So if we do good one season and then do bad the next, that does not mean we need to replace the whole squad. It is to be expected. Making top four and winning one title under ole in three seasons would be the aim.

Yes we need players in the summer, three or four IMO.

 

[ForestRGoinUp]

I am sorry but this is fantasist stuff, as if Walter Mitty was analyzing our team. Martial is very good. Could have done better last night alright, but he is still good. We could do what you say and sign a whole new defense, midfield and attack, and then two years later you will be saying we need a complete overall again. Like i said, we cannot keep replacing player after player. We have to have faith in them. The other thing as well is the league is fiercely competitive. Chelsea won the league and then came fifth i think because you have six teams going for one position. If it were any other league Spurs would have at least a Title and City under pep would probably win a three in the row. So if we do good one season and then do bad the next, that does not mean we need to replace the whole squad. It is to be expected. Making top four and winning one title under ole in three seasons would be the aim.

Yes we need players in the summer, three or four IMO.

To be fair, I said 7 over the next 2 summers because I know it can't happen in 1. So we're not disagreeing as much as you think. I do mean 7 nailed on starters though. No point buying squad level players to back up squad level players.

 

[Hugh Jass]

To be fair, I said 7 over the next 2 summers because I know it can't happen in 1. So we're not disagreeing as much as you think. I do mean 7 nailed on starters though. No point buying squad level players to back up squad level players.

The problem is you need a squad of capable players, but many players want to play and not be on the bench.

I think Lukaku is a certainty to go, not because we want to sell but because he wont be happy playing second fiddle to Rashford.

You need workers as well. Our 2007 team had Park and Haregreaves, two men who when told to do a job, would do it. They did not mind getting dirty while ronaldo and tevez and Rooney scored the goals and got the plaudits. Liverpool have Milner in the middle to do the exact same thing. Work hard so Salah can get the goals. He wont win the Ballon d'or but he is so important.

 

[DSG]

Sometimes I wonder how our scouting/procurement could be so bad. We see top young talent always going to clubs like Atletico, City, PSG, Bayern etc.

United really need to sort their shit out. If Ole is to be successful here he'll need to do alot better than previous managers and also better than he's done previously himself.

Takes more than an 11 to win a league. Still not over the fact he gave Jones a new deal.

Jones should have been the first CB out of the door closely followed by Rojo unless he has fully recovered from his injury.

OUT
Jones
Darmian
Valencia
Sanchez
Lukaku

IN
CB De Ligt Ajax/Top young CB
RB Pereira Leicester/Experienced RB
CM Neves Wolves/Partner Matic and can play in a 2 or 3
RW Sancho Dortmund/Potentially world class winger
ST Jimenez Wolves/Mobile bigman

£200m to mount a challenge next season in the League. Why not when we've spent more buying duds?

200m *might* get you Sancho and Pereira. De Ligt will be sold for more than 80m. Wolves won’t be letting Neves and Jimenez go, they’ve just signed. As recently posted, Sancho is turning himself into one of the hottest assets in world football. I seriously doubt he will move this summer. He may move next summer, but the price tag will be high.

I disagree that we need 5-6 signings to challenge for the league. Do you seriously think Jimenez is a big upgrade from Lukaku?

I’d like to see £200m in spend, but I’d rather buy 3-4 players, definitely a CB, a DM and an attacker. A seasoned RB while Dalot develops would be nice. I’m actually quite nervous about Dalot. From what I’ve seen of him, he’s more of a physical specimen than a footballer. He doesn’t have great skill, gives the ball away far too cheaply, and seems to be lacking positional awareness. None of those are ideal in a modern fullback. I think I’d rather give Fosu Mensah a shot...

 

[RedDevilCanuck]

Astonishing we still dont have a proper right winger.

 

[VP89]

In

Koulibaly
Ndombele
Pacey, technical right winger
That celtic full back everyone on the caf loves (assuming he's worth the hype - Tierney is it?)

4 positions required as a minimum I feel

 

[ForestRGoinUp]

The problem is you need a squad of capable players, but many players want to play and not be on the bench.

I think Lukaku is a certainty to go, not because we want to sell but because he wont be happy playing second fiddle to Rashford.

You need workers as well. Our 2007 team had Park and Haregreaves, two men who when told to do a job, would do it. They did not mind getting dirty while ronaldo and tevez and Rooney scored the goals and got the plaudits. Liverpool have Milner in the middle to do the exact same thing. Work hard so Salah can get the goals. He wont win the Ballon d'or but he is so important.

That's all well and good. I happen to think it is an exercise in futility to compare anything we put out on the field now to anything coached by Sir Alex. There's simply such a gulf in managerial and motivational abilities that it is silly to compare or to think we can build the same type of team. The man best suited to doing this is Klopp, as evidenced by his selection in midfield like you mention. Say whatever you want about his trophy haul, but there simply are not a few extra Klopp-level managers hanging around that we can grab. He's built and perfected his own system over decades. It's not easily replicable.

As far as the Lukakus and others go...PSG were missing Edinson Cavani and Neymar. They then inserted backups who still ran circles around us. Not many clubs can do that, granted, but we don't even have 1 substitute that would scare an opponent. Get Lukaku Sanchez and Mata out of here as soon as humanly possible.

 

[Canagel]

Astonishing we still dont have a proper right winger.

We're still waiting for Nani to be replaced .

 

[Devil may care]

I am sorry but this is fantasist stuff, as if Walter Mitty was analyzing our team. Martial is very good. Could have done better last night alright, but he is still good. We could do what you say and sign a whole new defense, midfield and attack, and then two years later you will be saying we need a complete overall again. Like i said, we cannot keep replacing player after player. We have to have faith in them. The other thing as well is the league is fiercely competitive. Chelsea won the league and then came fifth i think because you have six teams going for one position. If it were any other league Spurs would have at least a Title and City under pep would probably win a three in the row. So if we do good one season and then do bad the next, that does not mean we need to replace the whole squad. It is to be expected. Making top four and winning one title under ole in three seasons would be the aim.

Yes we need players in the summer, three or four IMO.

I don't think he's in fantasy land with what he's saying as he's talking two summer windows. The level of our fullback's is not good enough in this era, it is an attacking position and we get very little off either flank, so there is two buys. We need one quality CB added to the team, we need another top CM and RW to move Matic and Lingard into their correct roles as squad players, and we need another attacker added to the mix on top of that as Sanchez, Lukaku and Mata should all be going, leaving us with Martial/Rashford/New signing as the starting attack, with Lingard/new signing/Greenwood or Chong as the back-ups.

CB
LB
RB
CM
RW
FW

Over the next two summers is on point IMO.

 

[Hugh Jass]

I don't think he's in fantasy land with what he's saying as he's talking two summer windows. The level of our fullback's is not good enough in this era, it is an attacking position and we get very little off either flank, so there is two buys. We need one quality CB added to the team, we need another top CM and RW to move Matic and Lingard into their correct roles as squad players, and we need another attacker added to the mix on top of that as Sanchez, Lukaku and Mata should all be going, leaving us with Martial/Rashford/New signing as the starting attack, with Lingard/new signing/Greenwood or Chong as the back-ups.

CB
LB
RB
CM
RW
FW

Over the next two summers is on point IMO.

he was saying to get rid of Martial, Rashford and Lingarrd. That is complete fantasy.

 

[ForestRGoinUp]

he was saying to get rid of Martial, Rashford and Lingarrd. That is complete fantasy.

Nah, I might not have stated it clearly. Wouldn't get rid of any of them. I just think that at least 2 of them (Martial and Lingard) should be squad players based on their current experience/output/etc. And I think if our team was built to compete for the league title that Rashford might work his way into the first XI, but that he would ideally be flanked by or supporting 2 other players that were inarguably top class. The 3 of them together as your first choice attack is a level or 2 below other top class attacks.

 

[Fosu-Mens]

I don't think he's in fantasy land with what he's saying as he's talking two summer windows. The level of our fullback's is not good enough in this era, it is an attacking position and we get very little off either flank, so there is two buys. We need one quality CB added to the team, we need another top CM and RW to move Matic and Lingard into their correct roles as squad players, and we need another attacker added to the mix on top of that as Sanchez, Lukaku and Mata should all be going, leaving us with Martial/Rashford/New signing as the starting attack, with Lingard/new signing/Greenwood or Chong as the back-ups.

CB
LB
RB
CM
RW
FW

Over the next two summers is on point IMO.

This summer: RB, CB, CM, Zaniolo(can play RW, LW, CAM, CM) and RW.
Next summer: LB, Sancho, FW.

Can be done within our financial limits if we kick some of the deadwood out. And if we bring in the right players we should be able to challenge for something relevant in the next 2 years.

 

[Devil may care]

he was saying to get rid of Martial, Rashford and Lingarrd. That is complete fantasy.

I think he cleared that up a bit in his next post to you but I don't agree with him on Martial, however I would agree that we should be like City where Martial is challenged for that wide spot with the kind of talents they have in Sane and Mahrez.

This summer: RB, CB, CM, Zaniolo(can play RW, LW, CAM, CM) and RW.
Next summer: LB, Sancho, FW.

Can be done within our financial limits if we kick some of the deadwood out. And if we bring in the right players we should be able to challenge for something relevant in the next 2 years.

I don't know about the exat player choices you've listed but as far as how I'd structure the 2 windows I pretty much agree with how you've laid it out, although I hope we don't need that second forward on top of Sancho or whomever in the summer 2020 window as I'm hoping one of the youngsters we are bringing through will have staked a claim to be one of the 6 options for the front 3.

 

[Mylock]

Ideal signings in the summer - De legt, Skinnar, Wan bissaka, Sancho and another striker if we sell both Sanchez and Lukaku. Sell Rojo, Smalling, Jones, Damian, McTominay, Peirera.

 

[ForestRGoinUp]

Ideal signings in the summer - De legt, Skinnar, Wan bissaka, Sancho and another striker if we sell both Sanchez and Lukaku. Sell Rojo, Smalling, Jones, Damian, McTominay, Peirera.

Yep, this is how assertive we need to be

 

[Fosu-Mens]

I don't know about the exat player choices you've listed but as far as how I'd structure the 2 windows I pretty much agree with how you've laid it out, although I hope we don't need that second forward on top of Sancho or whomever in the summer 2020 window as I'm hoping one of the youngsters we are bringing through will have staked a claim to be one of the 6 options for the front 3.

2019:
RB: Lala/Meunier £20m ish. Both in prime, Lala might be the cheaper option.
CB: Di Light £70m/Alderweireld £25m/Manolas £33m clause.
CM: Pellegrini £23m clause.
RW: Suso £33m clause. (Can cover for Pogba at CAM and already used to be the main creator in a team. Delivered on a high level for a struggling Milan for some time now.)
Zaniolo: Depends if he signs a new contract or not. Read somewhere that he wanted a 50m euro clause in his new contract. Guestimate £40m-£60m. The mix of Size, mobility, technicality etc is rare(Pogba). If you have watched Roma games you will see that Zaniolo is almost their main creator, and creates from all over the pitch. Can play in multiple positions, but given his size and abilities he can become deadly as a B2B.

Pellegrini, Manolas, Suso and the fullback alternatives all have a resale value similar to what we bought them for or more if we do not give them stupid money. So if they do not work out the money spent can easily be recouperated.... IF Matt Judge is not throwing money at them. Additionally it should be stated that all these are players that will improve our squad and first team(Bar Zaniolo because age)

With this we will have enough coverage in attack and rest of the team to sell/release Sanchez, Valencia and Mata. Sell Lukaku, Pereira, Darmian and Rojo should give us £50m in total.

2020:
RW: Sancho or if another equally promising player comes through. We have many things with the squad that needs fixing, so we should not spend £100m+ on him in 2019. He is the "icing on the cake" type of player.
LB: Tierney. £30m. Better than Robertson imo. Shaw can defend, but not attack.
FW: If none of our youngster are able to perform buy the biggest SA-talent out there.

 

[siw2007]

This would be my plan, but probably far too expensive:

Out:
Valencia - Great servant or the club, but with his recent injuries and Young/Dalot moving ahead of him in the pecking order, it might be he right time to let him go.
Rojo - We've got a lot defenders, and the position could do with a bit of gutting. If we re willing to side with Lindelof, Jones, Smalling and Bailly then Rojo is the fall guy. To be fair he has hardly played this season, he is a good player but would be better if we part ways.
Periera - Good player, but don't see him breaking in to the side, we've got Herrera, Fred and Pogba and don't think he will get into the side anytime soon so should probably go find another club.
Mata - Great player but starting to look a little out of place in Ole's set up. He does score a good number of goals but isn't always consistent. He might fancy a move back to Spain.
Sanchez - Know why we signed him but hasn't worked out at all. He's got big wages which could be better spent on maintaining the services of De Gea, Rashford and Pogba.

With a bit of luck we might get £30m for the lot.

Buys:
Wan Bissaka - Really impressed me at CP. Good at both ends of the pitch and might just need the platform to push on. Young has done well this yer and Dalot is young and talented, but Wan Bissaka could be a really solid buy. Think he might cost £30 - £35m??
Koulibaly - We really, really, really need a top class centre back. The best one that is not already at Liverpool or Madrid is this guy. I'm not sure he really has the appetite to move away but if we can convince him to come to us then he would make a huge impact to our defence. Dealing with Napoli would be difficult, would probably cost £100m.
Declan Rice - Matic has made a good comeback this year, but we could do with a younger more mobile defensive midfielder to come in. This lad fits the bill and a bit like Wan Bissaka could benefit from having the right platform to play on. Might cost £50m??
Sancho - This lad is extremely talented and exciting. Yes there are the City links but he reeks of George Best, Ryan Giggs and Cristiano Ronaldo. He could be the natural heir to their throne at the club. I saw links for him at £70m but I feel that is way to small. Dortmund would har no interest in selling him after letting Pulisic go, if we offered £70m the only answer we would get back would be laughing emoji's. Unfortunately we would probably have to offer £120-£130m if we were desperate for him, and City might concede too at the price due to their stocked options.


And then we go broke!!!

 

[In Rainbows]

Why is RB a priority for United? I don't see it as a priority until it's proven that next season Dalot isn't the solution. Buying a RB just makes the Dalot buy meaningless. I'm fine with that idea, just so long as he's given a chance next season or next half season first. RW is the bigger problem and RB is made to look worse because of that RW problem. Am I wrong for thinking it's possible Dalot improves with age next season to a point where RB isn't as big a problem as it currently is?

 

[KingMinger22]

Sometimes I wonder how our scouting/procurement could be so bad. We see top young talent always going to clubs like Atletico, City, PSG, Bayern etc.

United really need to sort their shit out. If Ole is to be successful here he'll need to do alot better than previous managers and also better than he's done previously himself.

Takes more than an 11 to win a league. Still not over the fact he gave Jones a new deal.

Jones should have been the first CB out of the door closely followed by Rojo unless he has fully recovered from his injury.

OUT
Jones
Darmian
Valencia
Sanchez
Lukaku

IN
CB De Ligt Ajax/Top young CB
RB Pereira Leicester/Experienced RB
CM Neves Wolves/Partner Matic and can play in a 2 or 3
RW Sancho Dortmund/Potentially world class winger
ST Jimenez Wolves/Mobile bigman

£200m to mount a challenge next season in the League. Why not when we've spent more buying duds?

De Ligt signed for Barca.

Also, £200m spent spectacularly well would not be nearly enough to make us a genuine PL contender.

We need to do something like what Real Madrid did in 2009.

That is, sign five top class first team players including 2 of the best plasters in the world and the hottest kid

However, in today’s terms that’s probably both of £600-700m.

We also don’t nearly have the pull we once had so I’d be skeptical that we could spend that much if we wanted.

 

[siw2007]

Why is RB a priority for United? I don't see it as a priority until it's proven that next season Dalot isn't the solution. Buying a RB just makes the Dalot buy meaningless. I'm fine with that idea, just so long as he's given a chance next season or next half season first. RW is the bigger problem and RB is made to look worse because of that RW problem. Am I wrong for thinking it's possible Dalot improves with age next season to a point where RB isn't as big a problem as it currently is?

RW is a priority I agree.

With regards to full back, if we sell Valencia and Darmian, then we literally just have 3 full backs of which 1 is injury prone. It's a squad game sometimes, and as much hope as I have for Dalot we could do with good options in that position. Of course we could just keep hold of Valencia another year, he's been a good servant but he isn't the player he once was.

 

[AndyJ1985]

Why is RB a priority for United? I don't see it as a priority until it's proven that next season Dalot isn't the solution. Buying a RB just makes the Dalot buy meaningless. I'm fine with that idea, just so long as he's given a chance next season or next half season first. RW is the bigger problem and RB is made to look worse because of that RW problem. Am I wrong for thinking it's possible Dalot improves with age next season to a point where RB isn't as big a problem as it currently is?

Dalot is one for the future; he looks promising but not anywhere near ready to be first choice. Ashley Young is shit, and Darmian is even worse. Of course RB should be a priority. Unless you actually believe Young and Dalot will form a title winning team next season.

 

[Hugh Jass]

This would be my plan, but probably far too expensive:

Out:
Valencia - Great servant or the club, but with his recent injuries and Young/Dalot moving ahead of him in the pecking order, it might be he right time to let him go.
Rojo - We've got a lot defenders, and the position could do with a bit of gutting. If we re willing to side with Lindelof, Jones, Smalling and Bailly then Rojo is the fall guy. To be fair he has hardly played this season, he is a good player but would be better if we part ways.
Periera - Good player, but don't see him breaking in to the side, we've got Herrera, Fred and Pogba and don't think he will get into the side anytime soon so should probably go find another club.
Mata - Great player but starting to look a little out of place in Ole's set up. He does score a good number of goals but isn't always consistent. He might fancy a move back to Spain.
Sanchez - Know why we signed him but hasn't worked out at all. He's got big wages which could be better spent on maintaining the services of De Gea, Rashford and Pogba.

With a bit of luck we might get £30m for the lot.

Buys:
Wan Bissaka - Really impressed me at CP. Good at both ends of the pitch and might just need the platform to push on. Young has done well this yer and Dalot is young and talented, but Wan Bissaka could be a really solid buy. Think he might cost £30 - £35m??
Koulibaly - We really, really, really need a top class centre back. The best one that is not already at Liverpool or Madrid is this guy. I'm not sure he really has the appetite to move away but if we can convince him to come to us then he would make a huge impact to our defence. Dealing with Napoli would be difficult, would probably cost £100m.
Declan Rice - Matic has made a good comeback this year, but we could do with a younger more mobile defensive midfielder to come in. This lad fits the bill and a bit like Wan Bissaka could benefit from having the right platform to play on. Might cost £50m??
Sancho - This lad is extremely talented and exciting. Yes there are the City links but he reeks of George Best, Ryan Giggs and Cristiano Ronaldo. He could be the natural heir to their throne at the club. I saw links for him at £70m but I feel that is way to small. Dortmund would har no interest in selling him after letting Pulisic go, if we offered £70m the only answer we would get back would be laughing emoji's. Unfortunately we would probably have to offer £120-£130m if we were desperate for him, and City might concede too at the price due to their stocked options.


And then we go broke!!!

I would mostly agree with this regarding who we should buy. I dont think spunking 90 million on a CB is worth it though. For a top Cb, maybe 60 million with add-ons.

I think we have to buy big for the RW. Hopefully Sancho although there are other options.

 

[Fracture90]

De Ligt signed for Barca.

Also, £200m spent spectacularly well would not be nearly enough to make us a genuine PL contender.

We need to do something like what Real Madrid did in 2009.

That is, sign five top class first team players including 2 of the best plasters in the world and the hottest kid

However, in today’s terms that’s probably both of £600-700m.

We also don’t nearly have the pull we once had so I’d be skeptical that we could spend that much if we wanted.

When was what?

 

[siw2007]

I would mostly agree with this regarding who we should buy. I dont think spunking 90 million on a CB is worth it though. For a top Cb, maybe 60 million with add-ons.

I think we have to buy big for the RW. Hopefully Sancho although there are other options.

If we could find a top cb for 60, I would be all for it. I just can't see one out there. I am looking for perhaps a more experienced one, there is obviously options like Milinkovic and Skriniar, but not sure we would benefit from a younger one, especially since we would do well to push Tuanzebe into more action rather than loan.

RW is important though. We look good with Rashford, Lingard and Martial up top but we lose something when just one goes, so to add another fast quality forward who could play off the right would really give us better depth. Sancho does stick out as the best choice I think.

 

[ErranMorad]

No way do we need five or six players. We cannot keep replacing players if they have a bad performance. We will never have a settled team if we do that.

Three or four players max.

Who are we replacing? It's pretty clear that the likes of Lukaku & Sanchez aren't going to cut it here. It would be wise to cut our losses in the summer and come ahead of those blunders while the two still have some value. The rest - Mata, Rojo, Valencia, Darmian and Jones - should anyway have no future at the club. Need to get rid of them and get some quality players that can actually make a difference to the team and the squad.

 

[In Rainbows]

Dalot is one for the future; he looks promising but not anywhere near ready to be first choice. Ashley Young is shit, and Darmian is even worse. Of course RB should be a priority. Unless you actually believe Young and Dalot will form a title winning team next season.

If we buy a RB, how is Dalot supposed to develop? No I don't think that will form a title winning team, but I'm not hoping to solve all of United's problems in one transfer window. I don't expect Young to be here past next season, and if Dalot fails to impress next season, then RB becomes a priority and we make Dalot the bench option that Young should be next season. To me, buying a RB just means giving up on Dalot because I see no point in buying a RB who will only be here for 1-2 seasons. The next RB buy should be a long term solution.

I think there's a difference between acknowledging that RB is a problem and labeling it as a priority. We can get by, having the RB position unsolved for 0.5-1 season. It's better use of our money to just be patient for just a tiny bit, that's all.

 

[In Rainbows]

If we could find a top cb for 60, I would be all for it. I just can't see one out there. I am looking for perhaps a more experienced one, there is obviously options like Milinkovic and Skriniar, but not sure we would benefit from a younger one, especially since we would do well to push Tuanzebe into more action rather than loan.

RW is important though. We look good with Rashford, Lingard and Martial up top but we lose something when just one goes, so to add another fast quality forward who could play off the right would really give us better depth. Sancho does stick out as the best choice I think.

We would benefit from someone like de Ligt in several ways. He's already good enough to be our starter. He's 19 so the potential of him being United's CB for 10 seasons matches up really well with our best talents at the club. Pogba will be 26, Martial 24, and Rashford 22. Tuanzebe will be 22. That's without taking into account Dalot, Shaw, and potential integration of Greenwood and Gomes. It makes more sense to build towards the future, then someone who will only be great the next 2 seasons.

Just look at Barca. They already bought Dembele, De Jong, and are rumored to be buying De Ligt and Jovic. They're clearly preparing for life after Messi.

United targeting Sancho and De Ligt gives United a massive head start in Europe for life after Messi. And if De Ligt decides he wants to leave United, it will be for a massive fee which we can then use to buy a CB where by we're not worried about age because we would be in win now mode with all of our current young talents already developed.

 

[siw2007]

We would benefit from someone like de Ligt in several ways. He's already good enough to be our starter. He's 19 so the potential of him being United's CB for 10 seasons matches up really well with our best talents at the club. Pogba will be 26, Martial 24, and Rashford 22. Tuanzebe will be 22. That's without taking into account Dalot, Shaw, and potential integration of Greenwood and Gomes. It makes more sense to build towards the future, then someone who will only be great the next 2 seasons.

Just look at Barca. They already bought Dembele, De Jong, and are rumored to be buying De Ligt and Jovic. They're clearly preparing for life after Messi.

United targeting Sancho and De Ligt gives United a massive head start in Europe for life after Messi. And if De Ligt decides he wants to leave United, it will be for a massive fee which we can then use to buy a CB where by we're not worried about age because we would be in win now mode with all of our current young talents already developed.

I would love to get De Ligt. Out of the younger centre backs he does stand out as the one to get, but I think Barcelona have snapped him up too.

Having a core of young talents is the right way to go, which is why I have mentioned Wan Bissaka, Rice and Sancho. But there has to be a balance too and think we would benefit from having a more 'hardened professional' at centre back to play alongside the younger Lindelof and Tuanzebe.

 

[KingMinger22]

I would mostly agree with this regarding who we should buy. I dont think spunking 90 million on a CB is worth it though. For a top Cb, maybe 60 million with add-ons.

I think we have to buy big for the RW. Hopefully Sancho although there are other options.

VVD went to Liverpool for £75m. That is the minimum precedent now for a top CB.

Players I would love to see come to United that are realistic:

Sancho
Rice
Aldeirweld
Maguire

 

[Isotope]

two things I learned from SAF glory days, you can't mess around with attacking position. It has to be top class, best of the best in the league. Then centerback has to be world class also. All other positions are secondary / can wait to be filled up.

 

[Devil may care]

2019:
RB: Lala/Meunier £20m ish. Both in prime, Lala might be the cheaper option.
CB: Di Light £70m/Alderweireld £25m/Manolas £33m clause.
CM: Pellegrini £23m clause.
RW: Suso £33m clause. (Can cover for Pogba at CAM and already used to be the main creator in a team. Delivered on a high level for a struggling Milan for some time now.)
Zaniolo: Depends if he signs a new contract or not. Read somewhere that he wanted a 50m euro clause in his new contract. Guestimate £40m-£60m. The mix of Size, mobility, technicality etc is rare(Pogba). If you have watched Roma games you will see that Zaniolo is almost their main creator, and creates from all over the pitch. Can play in multiple positions, but given his size and abilities he can become deadly as a B2B.

Pellegrini, Manolas, Suso and the fullback alternatives all have a resale value similar to what we bought them for or more if we do not give them stupid money. So if they do not work out the money spent can easily be recouperated.... IF Matt Judge is not throwing money at them. Additionally it should be stated that all these are players that will improve our squad and first team(Bar Zaniolo because age)

With this we will have enough coverage in attack and rest of the team to sell/release Sanchez, Valencia and Mata. Sell Lukaku, Pereira, Darmian and Rojo should give us £50m in total.

2020:
RW: Sancho or if another equally promising player comes through. We have many things with the squad that needs fixing, so we should not spend £100m+ on him in 2019. He is the "icing on the cake" type of player.
LB: Tierney. £30m. Better than Robertson imo. Shaw can defend, but not attack.
FW: If none of our youngster are able to perform buy the biggest SA-talent out there.

I'm not familiar with Lala but I like Meunier for RB, of the CB's de Ligt would be my choice by far from those 3, I don't rate Manolas that highly, he's a bull in a china shop like Jones and Baily IMO. I've said numerous times on here I think Alderweireld is declining and not the ideal partner for Lindelof, but I could see the club cutting corners and bringing him in due to the low buyyout clause.

Pellegrini is a decent punt at €22M but he's a Pogba cover right now, we need a proper #6 addition that can at the very least rotate with Matic and Herrera isn't the answer, nor is Pellegrini.

As regards Suso, I honestly think he'd sink in the PL from the bit I've seen of him, I think he'd end up like Kagawa and Mkhitaryan rather than a David Silva, if we are going for that type of player and not looking to spend Dybala money, I'd go for Fekir, I'm not 100% sure about him in the PL but I think he's got a better chance than Suso. I've nopt seen nearly enough of Zaniolo to comment but he might be better on the 2020 list with Sancho, give him more time to develop.

 

[Devil may care]

Why is RB a priority for United? I don't see it as a priority until it's proven that next season Dalot isn't the solution. Buying a RB just makes the Dalot buy meaningless. I'm fine with that idea, just so long as he's given a chance next season or next half season first. RW is the bigger problem and RB is made to look worse because of that RW problem. Am I wrong for thinking it's possible Dalot improves with age next season to a point where RB isn't as big a problem as it currently is?

Dalot doesn't look anywhere near ready though, and we can't go into next season with Young starting every game. I was watching a Wes Brown interview yesterday and he talked about how he didn't worry about players being bought for his position because if you are at United you should expect to compete for your spot, not just have a clear path. If you look at Spurs they have 4 fullback's and they compete for starts, they rotate as it's such a physically demanding position now as it's box to box. Fullback's are a crucial attacking outlet in the modern game and we get very little from either flank, we need to strengthen our options.

 

[In Rainbows]

Dalot doesn't look anywhere near ready though, and we can't go into next season with Young starting every game. I was watching a Wes Brown interview yesterday and he talked about how he didn't worry about players being bought for his position because if you are at United you should expect to compete for your spot, not just have a clear path. If you look at Spurs they have 4 fullback's and they compete for starts, they rotate as it's such a physically demanding position now as it's box to box. Fullback's are a crucial attacking outlet in the modern game and we get very little from either flank, we need to strengthen our options.

Then you're expecting Dalot to not improve next season. I want to give him a chance to show he's improved. By priority I mean somebody that needs to be bought this summer and buying a RB could deter us from making a more expensive signing elsewhere. That's why I'm in favor of holding out at least half a season. The downside is if Dalot doesn't show he's improved, we need to buy in January. The upside is that we potentially don't waste 30-50mil in transfer fees this summer for a RB if Dalot does show he's clearly better than Young.

 

[AndyJ1985]

Then you're expecting Dalot to not improve next season. I want to give him a chance to show he's improved. By priority I mean somebody that needs to be bought this summer and buying a RB could deter us from making a more expensive signing elsewhere. That's why I'm in favor of holding out at least half a season. The downside is if Dalot doesn't show he's improved, we need to buy in January. The upside is that we potentially don't waste 30-50mil in transfer fees this summer for a RB if Dalot does show he's clearly better than Young.

Young players can improve without starting 30+ games a season, and frankly expecting him to improve to the point he's good enough to be first choice for United is unreasonable. Buying a good full back wouldn't be a waste of money even if Dalot improves, because Young is crap and needs replacing anyway.

 

[Devil may care]

Then you're expecting Dalot to not improve next season. I want to give him a chance to show he's improved. By priority I mean somebody that needs to be bought this summer and buying a RB could deter us from making a more expensive signing elsewhere. That's why I'm in favor of holding out at least half a season. The downside is if Dalot doesn't show he's improved, we need to buy in January. The upside is that we potentially don't waste 30-50mil in transfer fees this summer for a RB if Dalot does show he's clearly better than Young.

I don't think he'll improve anywhere near enough to make the starting spot his own and he can improve by rotating with another quality option, he can also play LB so he could get some games at LB as well, in fact I'd argue his best outing for us this season was at LB against Brighton. Dalot/Young/Shaw is just not good enough to go into a season with, and we make so much money I am tired of this mantra that we need to cut corners because our owners and their cronies want to line their pockets, we need a summer where whatever money is needed to take this squad up a couple of levels is invested, no scrimping and leaving positions without the quality or depth needed.

 

[In Rainbows]

Young players can improve without starting 30+ games a season, and frankly expecting him to improve to the point he's good enough to be first choice for United is unreasonable. Buying a good full back wouldn't be a waste of money even if Dalot improves, because Young is crap and needs replacing anyway.

I don't think he'll improve anywhere near enough to make the starting spot his own and he can improve by rotating with another quality option, he can also play LB so he could get some games at LB as well, in fact I'd argue his best outing for us this season was at LB against Brighton. Dalot/Young/Shaw is just not good enough to go into a season with, and we make so much money I am tired of this mantra that we need to cut corners because our owners and their cronies want to line their pockets, we need a summer where whatever money is needed to take this squad up a couple of levels is invested, no scrimping and leaving positions without the quality or depth needed.

None of us want to cut corners. We're just saying that because it's very likely it happens and also because we're going to target someone expensive. For example, if we get 200mil to spend, but target Sancho and De Ligt, then I won't consider RB a priority. If we don't target Sancho, then I would consider RB a priority because we would clearly have enough money to spend it on a RB. I'm posting on the assumption that we're going to be after Sancho because I think RW is our most important problem area.

We're in February. There are still games that Dalot can make an impression in or to improve in. There is preseason to make another impression on the manager. And I'm of the opinion that we should give Dalot a half season next season to showcase he's good enough to be the starter. If not, it's not like we can't buy a RB in January. They're a lot easier to buy than a CB or RW. Maybe I'm just more willing to give young players a chance. Just look at Liverpool with Alexander Arnold.