What do we still need? Aka The never ending story

[devilish]

What we need.

A- a complete FB who can attack and defend
B- 2 CBs (Varane is out, Evans is ancient, Maguire will probably be sold and Martinez is plagued with injury)
C- A LB (where is Malacia?)
D - Casemiro replacement
E- B2B
F- A RW
G- A striker

We won't get all in one window.

In my opinion we should aim for a mix of players (experienced EPL proven and non)

CBs- Todibo and Branthwaite. The latter can play as LB and CB, he's top quality and is at the right age for us. We should get Todibo at a cut price considering he's at Nice
DM: Conor Gallagher -24 years of age, 6ft tall, EPL proven and with 1 year left in his contract. His stats are pretty similar to those of Rice in terms of interceptions (28-33), tackles (56-51) and blocks (7 each) though Rice is still the better player
B2B- Thuram. 6ft3, 22 years of age and can play both as a DM and a B2B. Thuram would make us less dependent on McT on aerial prowess, He's got one year left in his contract at Nice so he'll be a steal
RW - Leroy Sane - 28 years of age, he's got EPL experience and he's doing wonders in the Bundesliga. He's also got 1 year left in his contract.
STK: Toney - 27 years old, EPL proven and he's got 1 year in his contract.

If we've got a good recruitment team then we can seal sneaky backroom deals with Toney and Sane promising them to sign them up (either this year or the next) no matter what on the condition that they go to their club and tell them that they either sell them to us or they wouldn't move. That should drive the price down.

Players we should have a look

- Roony Bardghji.RW and very talented. He's got 1 year left in his contract as well
- Frimpong, top quality RB/RW whose got a minimum fee clause in his contract

 

[daba]

What we need.

A- a complete FB who can attack and defend
B- 2 CBs (Varane is out, Evans is ancient, Maguire will probably be sold and Martinez is plagued with injury)
C- A LB (where is Malacia?)
D - Casemiro replacement
E- B2B
F- A RW
G- A striker

We won't get all in one window.

In my opinion we should aim for a mix of players (experienced EPL proven and non)

CBs- Todibo and Branthwaite. The latter can play as LB and CB, he's top quality and is at the right age for us. We should get Todibo at a cut price considering he's at Nice
DM: Conor Gallagher -24 years of age, 6ft tall, EPL proven and with 1 year left in his contract. His stats are pretty similar to those of Rice in terms of interceptions (28-33), tackles (56-51) and blocks (7 each) though Rice is still the better player
B2B- Thuram. 6ft3, 22 years of age and can play both as a DM and a B2B. Thuram would make us less dependent on McT on aerial prowess, He's got one year left in his contract at Nice so he'll be a steal
RW - Leroy Sane - 28 years of age, he's got EPL experience and he's doing wonders in the Bundesliga. He's also got 1 year left in his contract.
STK: Toney - 27 years old, EPL proven and he's got 1 year in his contract.

If we've got a good recruitment team then we can seal sneaky backroom deals with Toney and Sane promising them to sign them up (either this year or the next) no matter what on the condition that they go to their club and tell them that they either sell them to us or they wouldn't move. That should drive the price down.

Players we should have a look

- Roony Bardghji.RW and very talented. He's got 1 year left in his contract as well
- Frimpong, top quality RB/RW whose got a minimum fee clause in his contract

Like all of your suggestions apart from I’d go for Andre Trindade over Gallagher. Gallagher is a good consistent player, but he’s not really a DM and would prefer not to help Chelsea out financially again after we funded their summer with £55m on Mount. Andre is a risk coming from Brazilian league sure, but technically and tactically he’d give us more of what Mainoo has added recently and help us take the pressure off him personally a little. Don’t want to do what Barca did to Gavi and Pedro and run Mainoo into the ground.

I also don’t think we’ll get Toney given pretty much all the other big London teams are after a starting 9 and linked to him. Gimenez from Feyenoord would be my pick or Zirkzee if we want a different option / someone who could fill other roles tactically or play alongside Hojlund.

Appreciate that takes two EPL players out of the mix, but there’s value to be had outside if we do our scouting right.

 

[Woziak]

I agree, however it sounds like there is a good amount of interest from some big clubs which could spark a bidding war. Realistically he’s an £80m talent (probably more given his potential), so if there is more than one club that thinks he’s worth spending up to £40m or £50m for an £80m+ talent, then I don’t think it’s impossible to reach those figures.

Sancho on the other hand is different as he’s been playing the past two years, just seriously underperforming, so his general market value / perception has weakened. He’s also got super high wages unlike Greenwood so I think he’s more likely to go for about £25m even if he performs well at Dortmund.

Why would the club sell a 23 year old for £25m wanted by at least 3 major European clubs when Girona have 20% sell on so yep I agree with you 100% this will be a £40-50m sale of which United will end up with £32-40m plus Greenwood’s £75k per week wages are why these clubs Atletico, Barcelona, Milan and Juventus are interested?

 

[devilish]

Like all of your suggestions apart from I’d go for Andre Trindade over Gallagher. Gallagher is a good consistent player, but he’s not really a DM and would prefer not to help Chelsea out financially again after we funded their summer with £55m on Mount. Andre is a risk coming from Brazilian league sure, but technically and tactically he’d give us more of what Mainoo has added recently and help us take the pressure off him personally a little. Don’t want to do what Barca did to Gavi and Pedro and run Mainoo into the ground.

I also don’t think we’ll get Toney given pretty much all the other big London teams are after a starting 9 and linked to him. Gimenez from Feyenoord would be my pick or Zirkzee if we want a different option / someone who could fill other roles tactically or play alongside Hojlund.

Appreciate that takes two EPL players out of the mix, but there’s value to be had outside if we do our scouting right.

My strategy is based on three things ie players with the right characteristics (talent and age), cost + who would hit the ground running as soon as possible. That's key as we cant have players taking months to adapt. In my list there are 4 EPL proven players + 2 players who had previously played together and who know ineos very well.

CM is a very difficult issue to tackle. I remember when we used to make united foreign XI vs British and Irish XI at redcafe.and it was difficult to build a foreign CM who won't get embarrassed by the former. The EPL expect so much out of its CMs. They need to be jack of all trades (ie physically strong, technically gifted, hardworking, good passers of the ball etc). Kleberson came as a respectable Brazilian int and ended with a dislocated shoulder mere weeks after playing for us. Ando was considered a very promising Brazilian CM. He ended a meme with us. I love Ederson of atalanta but I am aware that Brazilians and United tend not to mix very well together

Gallagher, thuram and Mainoo should, on paper, provide that mix we need as dm/dlp position. They aren't exactly the dm we need but so was Carrick and Keane who started as dlp/b2b and ended as top quality DMs for us. The three will need to be rotated as we can't burn kids out. However there's no development without regular football

I was among the first to mention gimenez and I rate him very highly. However as said we need to hit the ground running and the last thing we need is to have to play hojlund (whose also very young) to the ground while gimenez is settling down. Still if we can't get toney on our terms then gimenez is not a bad option

 

[aeh1991]

Frimpong who has a fair release clause. It's another Kim Min-Jae situation in which on the first view the RB spot doesnt seem like an urgent position, but having a class player like him would instantly improve our overall play. While Shaw on the left would be the more inverted FB, Frimpong could run the right flank up and down and contribute to the attack, which Dalot seems to be trying but isn't really great at. Now that Bayern has signed a RB, the strongest contenders have left the race. Actually most top clubs have a top RB, so we might have a good chance.

 

[Leftback99]

We definitely need a left back

 

[philippexyz]

We need like 10 more quality players to compete for the league + new manager, probably. It will take at least two years(with new INEOS regime) to make a competent team capable of competing with best teams in the PL/World.

I think the priority right now are centre-backs, fixing the midfield - replacing Casemiro because of age and Bruno because of his (lack of)ability. Plus another striker as competition/backup for Hojlund.

Two centre-backs, two midfielders, and a striker for the upcoming summer. It's probably too much, but that's what I would focus on. Maybe a left back, as well(it's pretty high in the priority list because both Shaw and Malacia are injury prone).

 

[aeh1991]

unpopular opinion, but we should sign a RB and LB. For that we might have to sign only one CM and CB, instead of two or three. if we sign a LB Shaw could become a LCB backup next to competing for the LB position. On the righr I would sell one of the two RBs to fund a tramsfer of Frimpong.

 

[NoPace]

Basically we look like this in the medium term:

Rashford-Hojlund-Garnacho
-------Bruno-------Mainoo--------
------------------DM--------------------
Shaw-Lisandro--RCB------Dalot
----------------Onana-----------------

so those are the next 2 buys.

Casemiro and Varane were stopgap buys and we need long-term replacements whether they're staying for another year (I'd probably sell Maguire, keep Varane and pray that Kambwalla can be ready in 2-3 years, and at DM we'll probably need a chap backup in the summer of 2025 to replace Casemiro or grab one this summer if the Saudis will offer 30M+ for Casemiro) or go.

In terms of the 2nd XI:
-Another #9 is mandatory, we'd be in hell without Hojlund. Rashford has pace and is a backup option too when we're up against a high line, so I'd lean towards another strong classic #9 like Hojlund.

And the other buys probably look like:
-An LCB who can backup Martinez (and ideally cover LB). Hincapie would have been good but he's got 3 years left on his deal now and Leverkusen are gonna be in the CL, no reason for them to sell for another year at least if not two.

-Swap out Wan-Bissaka by selling him for like 20M to some Prem team and using the money on a good young RB, guys like Gusto and Boey went for only 10M or so so basically that covers a replacement that hopefully grows into a better player than Dalot.

TLDR:
-Expensive:
-RCB and DM

-Fairly expensive:
backup #9
-Mid-range RB top young player
-Cheaper LCB backup

 

[Roboc7]

I still think 2 centre backs, 2 midfielders and a backup fo Rasmus are the priorities. Left back looks like more of a problem as well now though and AWB’s contract situation means a right back might be required.

Varane and Evans out of contract this summer and AWB, Maguire and Lindelof next summer. You ideally dont want to renew any of their contracts or let them all leave for nothing so lots of work to do just in defence.

 

[aeh1991]

-Swap out Wan-Bissaka by selling him for like 20M to some Prem team and using the money on a good young RB, guys like Gusto and Boey went for only 10M or so so basically that covers a replacement that hopefully grows into a better player than Dalot.

fyi both went for €30m / £25m

 

[Valencia Shin Crosses]

I still think 2 centre backs, 2 midfielders and a backup fo Rasmus are the priorities. Left back looks like more of a problem as well now though and AWB’s contract situation means a right back might be required.

Varane and Evans out of contract this summer and AWB, Maguire and Lindelof next summer. You ideally dont want to renew any of their contracts or let them all leave for nothing so lots of work to do just in defence.

Defense and DM without a doubt should be our priority going into the summer, and they all need to be top athletes. We lack so much athleticism at the back as a unit that it kills our ability to defend space well, and Casemiro is already a bit washed as well legs wise. But Lindelof/Maguire/Evans is a laughably unathletic selection of CBs, and even Varane is past his best and Martinez is only average in that department even if he makes up for it in many other spots.

Something like: Branthwaite + Todibo + Onana + Thuram would do so much for our squad as we'd finally have the PnP to compete with other top teams through the spine. Doesn't have to be those 4 specific players, but the point being those are the types of profiles we need to target.

I also think we need another versatile forward that can play across the front line that adds a constant rotational option to the team (basically our version of the Liverpool/Jota signing).

 

[FrankWhite]

Back up ST, starting RW, starting DM, Starting RCB, starting LB and back up RB.

If we can't do all that then, get the ST, starting DM and staring RCB.

 

[Highfather_24]

Last season we needed a CF, centreback, couple of midfielders, GK and a fullback(probably in that order). We had a 200M budget.

We just got the GK(debatable upgrade) and the CF(young talent). We blew the rest of the money on an attacking midfielder which we didnt need to replace another played we didnt need(VdB).

So yeah, horrible horrible recruitment. And we still need a CB, RB, couple of CMs, and a CF. Maybe a winger too.

 

[Escobar]

We need 4 players badly and another 3 to make sure we can compete. Pretty bad situation tbh

 

[ManRed]

Must buys - CB, DM and backup CF
Maybe - RB, Winger, CM and LB

Have to improve our wingers as we cant always buy one.

This should be our priority in the summer

 

[Redivy]

Frimpong who has a fair release clause. It's another Kim Min-Jae situation in which on the first view the RB spot doesnt seem like an urgent position, but having a class player like him would instantly improve our overall play. While Shaw on the left would be the more inverted FB, Frimpong could run the right flank up and down and contribute to the attack, which Dalot seems to be trying but isn't really great at. Now that Bayern has signed a RB, the strongest contenders have left the race. Actually most top clubs have a top RB, so we might have a good chance.

I think if we bring in Frimpong then we definitely need to strengthen our right sided centre back as well. Frimpong needs to be able to bomb forward with the full confidence that his centre back has him covered.

I’m torn about whether we need a starting right back or not, Dalot shows so many good glimpses but he just needs to put it together over a course of a whole season.

 

[Redivy]

We need 4 players badly and another 3 to make sure we can compete. Pretty bad situation tbh

I don’t think we are 7 players away from competing. Realistically if you add a starting caliber centre back, a midfield alternative to Mainoo, a winger who can alternate with Garnacho and a backup striker, then we should be able to compete.

Thats only 4, and could look something like this:

Todibo
Thuram
Williams
Taremi

You need to factor in Holjund, Garnacho and Mainoo having another year of development.

 

[Paul778]

I don’t think we are 7 players away from competing. Realistically if you add a starting caliber centre back, a midfield alternative to Mainoo, a winger who can alternate with Garnacho and a backup striker, then we should be able to compete.

Thats only 4, and could look something like this:

Todibo
Thuram
Williams
Taremi

You need to factor in Holjund, Garnacho and Mainoo having another year of development.

We need two CB. We have Maguire, Lindelof and Evans who cannot play a high line and we have Varane who is a sick note and can only play 50% of games even when fit.

 

[AngeloHenriquez]

Must buys - CB, DM and backup CF
Maybe - RB, Winger, CM and LB

Have to improve our wingers as we cant always buy one.

This should be our priority in the summer

Agree with the "Must buys" except I would add LB with Shaw's injuries and Malacia out the full year (And no idea if he can even get back to that level) it's imperative.

The Maybe for me shouldn't be a RW if we have Amad and Pellistri who I think can go up a level, it should be another CB (On top of the "Must Buys") and then another defensively minded midfielder and none of that address if any of our main players leave but does assume we don't sign Amrabat

 

[OT_United]

I don’t think we are 7 players away from competing. Realistically if you add a starting caliber centre back, a midfield alternative to Mainoo, a winger who can alternate with Garnacho and a backup striker, then we should be able to compete.

Thats only 4, and could look something like this:

Todibo
Thuram
Williams
Taremi

You need to factor in Holjund, Garnacho and Mainoo having another year of development.

Taremi has just signed pre contract for Inter.
I would be tempted with Callum Wilson tbh.

 

[aeh1991]

I think if we bring in Frimpong then we definitely need to strengthen our right sided centre back as well. Frimpong needs to be able to bomb forward with the full confidence that his centre back has him covered.

I’m torn about whether we need a starting right back or not, Dalot shows so many good glimpses but he just needs to put it together over a course of a whole season.

Oh we definitely need one or two CBs.

 

[UpWithRivers]

I think we need to level up and not just buy for the future players. We already have Garnacho, Antony, Mainoo, Hojlund, Amad as out future stars. We need -

Defence
LB - Shaw plays 25/30 games max. We need a good back up.
CBs - if we are getting one then as I say level up. Everyone thinks Varane and Maguire are sht but the odds of a 30 mill CB walking in and bettering them is low. Possible but I doubt it.

Ideal players - De ligt - he is being benched by Upamecano and Kim. He's only 24 and a top player. Him and Martinez would be a great partnership.
LB - Facundo Medina. He plays LCB in a 3 but I think he can cover as LB a bit like Ake and Gvardiol. Plus he will be good cover for Martinez. His passing and moving the ball from the back is top class. It will mean we won't miss Martinez ability on the ball if he is injured.

Midfield
CM - De Jong. Again yes no one wants him and he might fk us off again but this is the player to take us up a level. We only have Mainoo with any technical ability. How many years have we said we need to control the midfield and we need someone to get the ball from defence to attack. We'll here is the perfect man.
Plan B - Well anyone else is a level or 2 down. Onana, Zubimendi etc. Pick one

Attack
Striker - Garnacho looks like he can claim the RW. Then we have Amad and Antony even Pellistri. I don't think we will bin all of them off. LW is Rashfords and Garnachos. I think we can do better but we are stacked. But we need goals. Lots of goals. So back up/ first choice striker. I don't think it will hurt for Hojlund to have less games.I would go for Toney. He's 27. Which means he can give us 3 good years while Hojlund matures. He's on last year of his contract. I say bid 80/90 for him.

So muppet ideal world - De ligt - 70, De Jong 70, Tony 80, Medina 30. Total 250
Sell a few to make up the budget - Sancho, Greenwood, Varane etc

I think the below team and subs bench will take us up levels.

---‐--------------Onana
Dalot-----De ligt----Martinez---Shaw
---------Casemiro------De Jong
‐-----------------Bruno
Garnacho-----Toney-----Rashford

SUBS - Mount, Mainoo, Hojlund, Amad, Antony, Medina, Wan B, Maguire, McTominay

 

[gajender]

I think we need to level up and not just buy for the future players. We already have Garnacho, Antony, Mainoo, Hojlund, Amad as out future stars. We need -

Defence
LB - Shaw plays 25/30 games max. We need a good back up.
CBs - if we are getting one then as I say level up. Everyone thinks Varane and Maguire are sht but the odds of a 30 mill CB walking in and bettering them is low. Possible but I doubt it.

Ideal players - De ligt - he is being benched by Upamecano and Kim. He's only 24 and a top player. Him and Martinez would be a great partnership.
LB - Facundo Medina. He plays LCB in a 3 but I think he can cover as LB a bit like Ake and Gvardiol. Plus he will be good cover for Martinez. His passing and moving the ball from the back is top class. It will mean we won't miss Martinez ability on the ball if he is injured.

Midfield
CM - De Jong. Again yes no one wants him and he might fk us off again but this is the player to take us up a level. We only have Mainoo with any technical ability. How many years have we said we need to control the midfield and we need someone to get the ball from defence to attack. We'll here is the perfect man.
Plan B - Well anyone else is a level or 2 down. Onana, Zubimendi etc. Pick one

Attack
Striker - Garnacho looks like he can claim the RW. Then we have Amad and Antony even Pellistri. I don't think we will bin all of them off. LW is Rashfords and Garnachos. I think we can do better but we are stacked. But we need goals. Lots of goals. So back up/ first choice striker. I don't think it will hurt for Hojlund to have less games.I would go for Toney. He's 27. Which means he can give us 3 good years while Hojlund matures. He's on last year of his contract. I say bid 80/90 for him.

So muppet ideal world - De ligt - 70, De Jong 70, Tony 80, Medina 30. Total 250
Sell a few to make up the budget - Sancho, Greenwood, Varane etc

I think the below team and subs bench will take us up levels.

---‐--------------Onana
Dalot-----De ligt----Martinez---Shaw
---------Casemiro------De Jong
‐-----------------Bruno
Garnacho-----Toney-----Rashford

SUBS - Mount, Mainoo, Hojlund, Amad, Antony, Medina, Wan B, Maguire, McTominay

No offense but that team is nothing more than a team competing for top 4 that too after spending 250 m which we might still achieve this season .

 

[UpWithRivers]

No offense but that team is nothing more than a team competing for top 4 that too after spending 250 m which we might still achieve this season .

Probably but that is true of any transfer window we do unless we get Mbappe. I'd like to see a better realistic team that can catch City/Arsenal/Liverpool

 

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

What we need: a competent D.O.F and new negotiation and player sales team

 

[WouterWeghorst]

I think we need to level up and not just buy for the future players. We already have Garnacho, Antony, Mainoo, Hojlund, Amad as out future stars. We need -

Defence
LB - Shaw plays 25/30 games max. We need a good back up.
CBs - if we are getting one then as I say level up. Everyone thinks Varane and Maguire are sht but the odds of a 30 mill CB walking in and bettering them is low. Possible but I doubt it.

Ideal players - De ligt - he is being benched by Upamecano and Kim. He's only 24 and a top player. Him and Martinez would be a great partnership.
LB - Facundo Medina. He plays LCB in a 3 but I think he can cover as LB a bit like Ake and Gvardiol. Plus he will be good cover for Martinez. His passing and moving the ball from the back is top class. It will mean we won't miss Martinez ability on the ball if he is injured.

Midfield
CM - De Jong. Again yes no one wants him and he might fk us off again but this is the player to take us up a level. We only have Mainoo with any technical ability. How many years have we said we need to control the midfield and we need someone to get the ball from defence to attack. We'll here is the perfect man.
Plan B - Well anyone else is a level or 2 down. Onana, Zubimendi etc. Pick one

Attack
Striker - Garnacho looks like he can claim the RW. Then we have Amad and Antony even Pellistri. I don't think we will bin all of them off. LW is Rashfords and Garnachos. I think we can do better but we are stacked. But we need goals. Lots of goals. So back up/ first choice striker. I don't think it will hurt for Hojlund to have less games.I would go for Toney. He's 27. Which means he can give us 3 good years while Hojlund matures. He's on last year of his contract. I say bid 80/90 for him.

So muppet ideal world - De ligt - 70, De Jong 70, Tony 80, Medina 30. Total 250
Sell a few to make up the budget - Sancho, Greenwood, Varane etc

I think the below team and subs bench will take us up levels.

---‐--------------Onana
Dalot-----De ligt----Martinez---Shaw
---------Casemiro------De Jong
‐-----------------Bruno
Garnacho-----Toney-----Rashford

SUBS - Mount, Mainoo, Hojlund, Amad, Antony, Medina, Wan B, Maguire, McTominay

this is super weird to me. Very different players. I’d like zubimendi, mind. Think we should look for ballplayers, which onana isn’t. He would add to corner setups but not much else.

 

[FerociousCorgis]

i mean i always say it, but really is easier to just say what we dont need vs what we still need. A number 10 we dont need assuming they dont move bruno on for some reason this summer. LW prob safe considering we have garnacho/rashford there and i highly doubt the club has the stones to move rashford on. If they do that and they view Garnacho as the RW slot then id understand that. As much as i dont like what weve seen so far, be a huge call to move Onana on this early so id assume they view starting GK as set. Hojlund i like at CF, but def needs help up there with another option.

Other than that pretty much every other position is a need. LB cant stay healthy, one cb is old and cant stay fit in Varane-other hasnt shown good luck so far with injuries in martinez. RB has dalot, which is ok but could prob use an upgrade to really be title challenging team. CMs pretty much just has mainoo who has any shot of being here after next season barring a mount resurgance. RW-Garnacho?

So yeah i mean pretty much everywhere needs upgrading in one way or another. Except the 10

 

[UpWithRivers]

this is super weird to me. Very different players. I’d like zubimendi, mind. Think we should look for ballplayers, which onana isn’t. He would add to corner setups but not much else.

That's why it's plan b. I don't think there is an ideal midfielder. Zubimendi looks good but will he cut the prem and he looks like he wont leave which says a lot about his character. Onana as you say isn't a ball player but he would bring strength and athleticism that we sorely lack. Jaoa neves looks class but 100 mill and 19? You can go on.

 

[Rojofiam]

I think we need to level up and not just buy for the future players. We already have Garnacho, Antony, Mainoo, Hojlund, Amad as out future stars. We need -

Defence
LB - Shaw plays 25/30 games max. We need a good back up.
CBs - if we are getting one then as I say level up. Everyone thinks Varane and Maguire are sht but the odds of a 30 mill CB walking in and bettering them is low. Possible but I doubt it.

Ideal players - De ligt - he is being benched by Upamecano and Kim. He's only 24 and a top player. Him and Martinez would be a great partnership.
LB - Facundo Medina. He plays LCB in a 3 but I think he can cover as LB a bit like Ake and Gvardiol. Plus he will be good cover for Martinez. His passing and moving the ball from the back is top class. It will mean we won't miss Martinez ability on the ball if he is injured.

Midfield
CM - De Jong. Again yes no one wants him and he might fk us off again but this is the player to take us up a level. We only have Mainoo with any technical ability. How many years have we said we need to control the midfield and we need someone to get the ball from defence to attack. We'll here is the perfect man.
Plan B - Well anyone else is a level or 2 down. Onana, Zubimendi etc. Pick one

Attack
Striker - Garnacho looks like he can claim the RW. Then we have Amad and Antony even Pellistri. I don't think we will bin all of them off. LW is Rashfords and Garnachos. I think we can do better but we are stacked. But we need goals. Lots of goals. So back up/ first choice striker. I don't think it will hurt for Hojlund to have less games.I would go for Toney. He's 27. Which means he can give us 3 good years while Hojlund matures. He's on last year of his contract. I say bid 80/90 for him.

So muppet ideal world - De ligt - 70, De Jong 70, Tony 80, Medina 30. Total 250
Sell a few to make up the budget - Sancho, Greenwood, Varane etc

I think the below team and subs bench will take us up levels.

---‐--------------Onana
Dalot-----De ligt----Martinez---Shaw
---------Casemiro------De Jong
‐-----------------Bruno
Garnacho-----Toney-----Rashford

SUBS - Mount, Mainoo, Hojlund, Amad, Antony, Medina, Wan B, Maguire, McTominay

We need profiles we don't have instead of upgrading on players we don't have to.

 

[gajender]

Probably but that is true of any transfer window we do unless we get Mbappe. I'd like to see a better realistic team that can catch City/Arsenal/Liverpool

That team has fundamental flaws which would prevent it from challenging for titles , CB's lack pace for one which would leave Team vulnerable if we intend to play high line , Unless De Jong is surrounded by players who don't treat the ball like hot potato there is no point in spending big on him either we aren't controlling midfield If Casemiro and Bruno are still part of it .

 

[UpWithRivers]

That team has fundamental flaws which would prevent it from challenging for titles , CB's lack pace for one which would leave Team vulnerable if we intend to play high line , Unless De Jong is surrounded by players who don't treat the ball like hot potato there is no point in spending big on him either we aren't controlling midfield If Casemiro and Bruno are still part of it .

There are very few really top CBs that are lightening quick. De ligt is as fast as Saliba and Gabriel and they do ok. Todibo isnt fast and everyone wants him. People have a fascination with one quality of a CB and nothing else. Of course if we manage to get a robot with max attributes for 40 mill that would be great. But we can't.
As for not bothering with technical attributes because of Case and Bruno then let's get rid of Mainoo while we are at it. Again you have a point but its a pie in the sjlky ideal world. I would like it to be Mount and Mainoo. But I put them as subs until they prove it. At the moment Bruno and Case are better

 

[UpWithRivers]

We need profiles we don't have instead of upgrading on players we don't have to.

??? We don't have any of these profiles

 

[WouterWeghorst]

That's why it's plan b. I don't think there is an ideal midfielder. Zubimendi looks good but will he cut the prem and he looks like he wont leave which says a lot about his character. Onana as you say isn't a ball player but he would bring strength and athleticism that we sorely lack. Jaoa neves looks class but 100 mill and 19? You can go on.

I think rojafiam puts it well, we need profiles, not names. I’d like a ball playing ‘anchor’ and an extra ball playing 8. The rest of the transfers depend on outgoings (when looking at midfielders). 1 of the 2 could be bigger so you have a + in set plays.

 

[Rojofiam]

??? We don't have any of these profiles

1. De Ligt is the almost the same profile as Maguire and Lindelöf. Also a slight upgrade on the former, at best.

What we need in a new RCB is someone who has pace, is really comfortable on the ball, can receive in tight situations under pressure and can receive with his back to goal.

2. De Jong is great and all, but Mainoo can do the job he would be brought in for, despite being the inferior player.

De Jong is also at his dream club, earning the 2nd highest salary in all of Europe (1.1m/week), and won't trade Catalonia for rainy Manchester.

3. Toney is a really good player, but both him and Hojlund are too good to just be a sub for the other. The fee would also be questionable, as he will be 28 by the time the transfer window comes around, and his mentality and attitude can also be questioned IMO.

4. I don't know much about Medina, but I'd rather sign a right back. Shaw has to be managed better, but Malacia is a good option, and Martínez would also be excellent in that LCB/LB role that Pep and Arteta use.

 

[UpWithRivers]

1. Yes De ligt has similar attributes to Maguire but I'd say strength and aerial ability especially next to Martinez is a must. Look at the Villa game for how much we need that. As to the other attributes he is a much better techically. passer, progresser of the ball etc. Plus he's only 24. Name me a better CB we can get?
2- Mainoo is a great player and all but he is nowhere near De Jong yet. We don't even know if a 6 is his best position. He could probably play alongside him. But those 2 are the only technical midfielder we have so I would say we are missing those attributes. I agree he probably won't come here but that's what they said about Varane, Case, loads of people. Might as well try.
3 we used to play with 4 top quality strikers. Now we have to put all our hopes on a 21 year old and get a shit donkey to sit on the bench? There is enough games for both of them. I agree there is a risk with Toney but again name someone better.
4- we have been totally fkd at LB this season but everyone wants a RB. We have 99 problems but RB isn't one

 

[UpWithRivers]

I think rojafiam puts it well, we need profiles, not names. I’d like a ball playing ‘anchor’ and an extra ball playing 8. The rest of the transfers depend on outgoings (when looking at midfielders). 1 of the 2 could be bigger so you have a + in set plays.

That's easy to say. But I would bet my house that nearly every manager would pick de ligt, de Jong and Toney over other random options like Todibo, Onana and Giminez. Those 3 have the attributes. Are the right age. Have the right mentality. Have the experience. Everything. As I said I don't see better options

 

[red_dt]

The starting positions I would be looking for top quality but say now for a striker I wouldn’t be interested in paying big fee for someone to cover for Højlund. I’d be scouting outside top 5 leagues and looking for a young striker with attributes that could translate to the premier league. A club in Belgium probably aren’t going to charge an arm and a leg for a player.

I don’t know much about Kevin Denkey but a quick google tells me he’s 23 years old and has scored 20 goals in 24 games this season in the Belgian Pro League. Looking at his FBRef tells me he takes nearly 4.5 shots per game which has him in top 1% of strikers for taking shots outside of the traditional top 5 leagues. There is a large correlation between the amount of shots strikers attempt on goal and the amount of goals they score.

I’m not necessarily saying we should take a punt on him specifically because of this 5 minute scouting report but you can use these metrics to filter players and create a shortlist that we can go and look at in detail. Not easy to find another Chicharito but that’s what I’d be attempting. If Denkey for example at 23 years old came in for less than £30m on sub £100k pw wages which I don’t think is unreasonable at all coming from the Belgian league at managed to provide cover for Hojlund and score 10-15 goals per season we’d probably be pretty satisfied with that. If he doesn’t do as well as we hoped then it’s not a huge financial hit and he wouldn’t be on massive wages so it probably wouldn’t be difficult to move him on again.

 

[daba]

I

We need profiles we don't have instead of upgrading on players we don't have to.

I like the Medina shout, he’d be able to back up both Shaw and Martinez and is fantastic ball player.

Medina, Todibo and Frimpong would be a nice set of new defenders for us to play with tactically. People talk about certain players like Frimpong requiring our tactics to be tinkered again, but it’s hardly like the current tactics are producing flowing performances so I say we need new players who can add a new dynamic, like Frimpong, Medina etc.

Add to the above 3: Thuram, Guirassy, Bardghji and Rafa Silva on a free and we’re cooking.

 

[Rojofiam]

I


I like the Medina shout, he’d be able to back up both Shaw and Martinez and is fantastic ball player.

Medina, Todibo and Frimpong would be a nice set of new defenders for us to play with tactically. People talk about certain players like Frimpong requiring our tactics to be tinkered again, but it’s hardly like the current tactics are producing flowing performances so I say we need new players who can add a new dynamic, like Frimpong, Medina etc.

Add to the above 3: Thuram, Guirassy, Bardghji and Rafa Silva on a free and we’re cooking.

Like I said, I don't know much about Medina, but I'd rather be looking to sign a right-back instead of another left-back.

Also, I like both Todibo and Frimpong a lot.