Wot, no LB? (2026)

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Hi everyone, me again!

Since we're now precisely 2/3 through the transfer window, here's your friendly reminder that (over the last 15 seasons)
  1. United complete just under 50% of our overall business in the last 1/3rd of the window
    • To break this down a bit, it's about 55-60% of our outgoings and 40-45% of our incomings
  2. Across the PL broadly, slightly more than 40% of all business happens in the last 1/3rd of the window
The last time we made less than 40% of our incoming signings from this point forward in a transfer window was 2019. If the ratio holds, it means 3 or more players would still need to come in. That would bring our total to 7 summer incomings (Santos, Tielemans, Darlow, Thompson, +3), which would be very rare. We've only signed 7+ players in a summer once in the last 15 years.

Why the differences between our incomings vs outgoings? Or between us and the PL broadly? It's all specifically because we skew later than the league as a whole over the last 15 years on our sales. Our high wages and bad player selection over that time horizon being the primary culprit - which makes our players bad value for most prospective buyers

Will the trend continue this summer? Not sure, we'll see. But anyone claiming "we're done with signings" probably wouldn't want to put money on it
 
devilish said:
That's fair enough and something I kind of agree with though tbf we'll be spending 70m on potential rather then what he'd be offering at present time. However its equally wrong to say that Luke Shaw is still good enough to be United's no 1 LB. Many underestimate what 2 games a week would do to the legs. We'll be lucky if he can be a squad player without breaking down as he usually does in such circumstances.
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That is not to say we should not sign another LB.. we cannot rely on Shaw playing 2 times a week, there is enough evidence of that.

We need a LB but it is not as if its Lewis Hall or bust.
 
UnitedSofa said:
It’s true though if we had signed Touchameni we would still have people claiming that it isn’t good enough. It never is “good” enough.

The issue is we have always gone and splashed the cash and it has come to hurt us at a time when we need the cash the most. If hadn’t overspent for a decade plus on players, we’d have players like Fernandes and Tonali - feck we’d even have Anderson I would think!

But the reality is a decade of over spending has hurt us and the sooner people realise that the sooner we can get some realistic goals in mind.

We need to be smarter and we need to be more intelligent with our buys, we can’t afford expensive mistakes any more. Unfortunately that’s just the way it is.

I still stick by the fact that we shouldn’t be concerned until the window is open, otherwise you’re just getting unnecessarily stressed (I mean don’t take it so seriously it affects your health anyway, but still) when there is still time to change it. Same applies to being 6th in the season. Why worry about that when rhe season is x number of games to go? That’s like saying you’re champion with 10 games to go as you’re in 1st. Don’t be excited we’re 1st now and that’s all that matters!
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Superb post
 
romufc said:
That is not to say we should not sign another LB.. we cannot rely on Shaw playing 2 times a week, there is enough evidence of that.

We need a LB but it is not as if its Lewis Hall or bust.
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Quite frankly it shouldn't be Lewis Hall, certainly not now that Newcastle are drowning in cash. This would be an Anthony deal all over again. However to expect that Luke Shaw would suddenly start bombing the flanks as he did when he was a kid is crazy. It's certainly not good for the club and its certainly not good for him either (he'll pick an injury and this is his last year of contract).
 
Valencia Shin Crosses said:
No the window hasn't shut. But I had issues with how we were approaching the window a month ago, when the same thing was said. Even in June, before the window was "officially open".

Even if we panic sign a couple of more players (god knows who that will be at this point, I'll puke if it's Adams and Robinson), the process from INEOS has reeked of them believing in their own intelligence/"best in class" BS when the truth is we've made maybe one marginal upgrade to our starting XI (Tielemans) and have still yet to show any sort of competence in selling players or negotiating well in tougher deals.
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Part of me wants to see us signing one of those two or a Berge just to see the reaction from CAF and fanbase
 
Bit of a depressing window so far.

So many issues still need fixing, we've more games this new season and we’re a few injuries away from being screwed.
 
Lennon7 said:
I just don't get this logic, though. We've overspent on shit players for years. Are we actually annoyed that we've found an absolute bargain in a quality, experienced midfielder and it's an issue because we only spent £35m?

Would you rather we'd have spent £85m on M Fernandes, an unproven kid?

I'm actually glad we're not being dumb in the market anymore. We've been by far the worst, bar maybe Chelsea, and something needed to change.
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I don't get the logic that just because we bought badly in the past, every expensive transfer is the wrong transfer. The right players need to be identified, and some will be expensive deals to do. Also, Cunha and Mbuemo were expensive deals to do, and as proven PL players, they were the right deals. Sesko also looks like a good deal, so far at least.

Also, nowhere did I say I was annoyed. In fact, if you read my post I said it was a good deal. I also didn't say we should have spent £85 million on Fernandes either.

The reality is that the best players will cost more money and you're not going to go and get three or four players like Tielemans at the price they paid for him. It's a one off. For that money you're lucky to get top championship players.

The club may be trying to take the Brighton/Brentford/Bournemouth model and try to identify top players who are available at less than they're worth but that's a big risk because you're taking a punt on a player who comes in and is expected to perform immediately under massive scrutiny. You end up saddled with players on long contracts who you may not find easy to move on. If you take that route, don't be surprised if you're finishing in and around those clubs.

We'll see where we are at the end of the window but as it stands the squad is miles off where it needs to be to compete across 4 competitions and consider top 4 likely.
 
devilish said:
Gary Neville had played in the EPL from 92 till 2011. I think he knows a thing or two of what a fullback needs. Shaw lost a yard of pace. That wouldn't be a problem back in the 90s when FBs were basically makeshift CBs. It's a problem today were FBs are expected to carry the role of the traditional winger while concurrently still have fuel in the tank to quickly defend. You're probably the only United supporter (or one of the few) who think that Shaw can do the job as first team LB.

Also who mentioned 15th place?
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Absolutely spot on. They have to cover more ground than any player on the pitch.
 
dwd said:
The discontent amongst the fanbase certainly seems to be rumbling again.
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To be fair, Carrick isn't stupid. He'll be planning to start the season with the current squad list, not the target list.
 
devilish said:
Gary Neville had played in the EPL from 92 till 2011. I think he knows a thing or two of what a fullback needs. Shaw lost a yard of pace. That wouldn't be a problem back in the 90s when FBs were basically makeshift CBs. It's a problem today were FBs are expected to carry the role of the traditional winger while concurrently still have fuel in the tank to quickly defend. You're probably the only United supporter (or one of the few) who think that Shaw can do the job as first team LB.

Also who mentioned 15th place?
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The 15th remark was more aimed at the poster called rebuild above saying we needed 6-10 players or we are screwed :lol:

Does Shaw need real competition and eventual replacing yes 100%, id have bought Mendes in a heartbeat from sporting, I was banging on about him a lot but there isn't currently an outstanding candidate in the league if Hall isn't better than him which he isn't.

Beyond that we already have a young English player at the club and a foreign punt in the 23s. I'm saying it's not as chronic a need as getting midfielders in which was essential so we duly went and did that.

Plus there probably will be more signings and sales either way. I think people are either bored or panicking. I'm glad the club isn't panicking and making the same mistakes yet again. Sensible heads are needed. It's not like we have the money to push for the league this summer. We need to consolidate top 4 and I think we are going about it quietly and professionally.
 
RedRover said:
Absolutely spot on. They have to cover more ground than any player on the pitch.
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No they don't. A lot of the time the full back will actually tuck in and let a midfielder and opposite full back on the other side go forward but that doesn't suit the narrative. Maybe in a back 5 it's a winger job. You want your full back to overlap when it's on. Shaw is an intelligent player who tucks in keeps the ball better than any other LB in the league, as I said. Why didn't we just sign that powerful runner from West Ham if that's the case? It's not FM, it's not a cheat code spamming the left wing and theres no FB getting loads of assists in this league currently

And central midfielders usually are the ones who run the most in a game. Over and over but once again, Gary Neville and stuff
 
I think we still have 2 signings left to make. Wouldn't be surprised to see either Robinson or spence at fb for 20m and Berge or Adams for 35m and that will be our business for the summer
 
Ali Dia said:
The 15tg remark was more aimed at the poster called rebuild above saying we needed 6-10 players or we are screwed :lol:

Does Shaw need real competition and eventual replacing yes 100%, id have bought Mendes in a heartbeat from sporting, I was banging on about him a lot but there isn't currently an outstanding candidate in the league if Hall isn't better than him which he isn't.

Beyond that we already have a young English player at the club and a foreign punt in the 23s. I'm saying it's not as chronic a need as getting midfielders in which was essential so we duly went and did that.

Plus there probably will be more signings and sales either way. I think people are either bored or panicking. I'm glad the club isn't panicking and making the same mistakes yet again. Sensible heads are needed. It's not like we have the money to push for the league this summer. We need to consolidate top 4 and I think we are going about it quietly and professionally.
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Here's my thoughts

a- The 1 game a week tend to benefit clubs greatly. Forget United for a second and focus on Napoli. In 23-24 they ended up 10th. That summer they sold Osimhen and moved Kvara in January. Despite all that they still ended Serie A winners simply because others got bogged into Europe

b- The squad had been reduced to its bare bones which made sense last season since we were out of Europe and almost every competition early on but we need to add bodies to the squad especially since we've got too many injury prone players (Martinez, Mount, Amass and Shaw) with serious question marks on whether De Ligt will ever return to high level football. Do we need 6-10 players? Possibly. Would we buy them in 1 window? I think we could have done 4 mid signings (ex Santos/Tielemans level) and 2 low key (Lammens/Dorgu) at max. Am I happy with just Santos and Tielemans? No

c- Should we buy Hall? United had made it obvious they don't want to overspend which is exactly the only way we'll get Hall. We shouldn't waste time on Hall just as we shouldn't have wasted time on Anderson once City came in for him. We're not a top dog anymore.

d- spending the season with Shaw as first teamer is wrong. The guy has lost a yard of pace, he's got an injury record which is as long as Mount Everest. It's even more stupid then relying on Mount as our 3rd CM.

e-Is the summer transfer window ruined? No. There's still time and several good talent available. However we need to get off our high horse and start aiming at realistic targets. The days of us going toe to toe with other big clubs for players is over. We shouldn't turn our noses at the likes of Kone etc. Which leads us to F

F- Everything I wrote might be jibberish unless we convince our main owner to loosen its purse strings, something the Glazers don't like to do when we hit CL qualification. SJR likes to put on his big boy pants but he hasn't zero control over United's kitty. It's not that long ago that Bloomberg stated that some of the evil gnomes wanted to sell some of their shares, something SJR had said previously that he isn't interested in. Therefore I wonder if we're in the middle of a political power struggle here with the Glazers closing the financial tap in retaliation towards Brexit Jim not buying more shares. SJR had foolishly accepted to become the face of Manchester United's management despite being a minority shareholder. He'll now have to bear the backlash for it
 
ron86 said:
I think we still have 2 signings left to make. Wouldn't be surprised to see either Robinson or spence at fb for 20m and Berge or Adams for 35m and that will be our business for the summer
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Berge would cost 40m-50m while Robinson or Spence will probably hit the 25m-30m mark.
 
ron86 said:
I think we still have 2 signings left to make. Wouldn't be surprised to see either Robinson or spence at fb for 20m and Berge or Adams for 35m and that will be our business for the summer
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robinson at lb would crush it for us. Be allowed to get forward and offer so much more than shaw can even think of at this point.
 
FerociousCorgis said:
robinson at lb would crush it for us. Be allowed to get forward and offer so much more than shaw can even think of at this point.
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He's a really good player and could be a shrewd signing, only issue is he's coming up 29 so isn't a long term answer
 
You have to wonder what those 'extensive' transfer meetings were. Carrick (as interim) saying he was involved in the strategy/targets... as, what's the plan? You should know then the main positions you want to strengthen - not umming and ahing in August.

Got spooked by the inflated prices, while seemingly still wanting to go with the criteria of prem proven put an early end to the 'gameplan'. Plus, probably relying on Rashford/Ugarte sales at least in the budget.

Now left scrambling around on cheaper alternatives, or not needing too much negotiation... Why would selling clubs though agree to that, with a couple of weeks left in the window?

We need minimum of a 3rd midfielder and left back. Another striker and centre back too ideally.
 
dannyrhinos89 said:
Bit of a depressing window so far.

So many issues still need fixing, we've more games this new season and we’re a few injuries away from being screwed.
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That could be said about every club. If Haaland and Doku each were to go down for six months, City are screwed. Rice and Odegaard go down, screwed.

We can choose to be depressed about only signing Santos and Tielemans so far, and the proof is never just in pre-season play of course, but these are two outstanding signings for us. And no one believes that we're done with our transfer business.

Cheer up!
 
ron86 said:
He's a really good player and could be a shrewd signing, only issue is he's coming up 29 so isn't a long term answer
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Possibly so although I do think we are into a generation of players who are going to be going deeper into their thirties and remaining at a good level. You still have cases like Shaw where the cumulative effect of injuries has sapped him of his acceleration and ability to operate in the attacking third but you also see players like Bruno who is more than two years older than Robinson and has not lost a step and does not look like he is going to slow down any time soon. I would be reasonably optimistic that Robinson could give us 3 or 4 years minimum and that would be well worth it.
 
ron86 said:
He's a really good player and could be a shrewd signing, only issue is he's coming up 29 so isn't a long term answer
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should just keep his price down then. He has at least 3-4 years of high quality left in him which is plenty. If we are smart and put a cheap buy back in for amass and he develops out we would have a natural replacement in that time in an ideal world.
 
ron86 said:
He's a really good player and could be a shrewd signing, only issue is he's coming up 29 so isn't a long term answer
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I don’t think we should only be looking at younger signings, sometimes we need players ready to go now.
 
Ollie Derbyshire said:
I don’t think we should only be looking at younger signings, sometimes we need players ready to go now.
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He also missed nearly half of Fulham's league matches last season. If we're going to buy, we should do it properly or not at all. If we signed him we'd be looking for a replacement again in a year or two.
 
I long for the days we return to ceefax where we only knew about a signing when they actually signed for the club. Or social media wasn’t as big as it is now.

Would for kill all this hysteria. Just saw a tweet that said “with United set to miss out on a third midfielder….”

Says who? What makes you say that with your chest? Like come on….
 
UnitedSofa said:
I long for the days we return to ceefax where we only knew about a signing when they actually signed for the club. Or social media wasn’t as big as it is now.

Would for kill all this hysteria. Just saw a tweet that said “with United set to miss out on a third midfielder….”

Says who? What makes you say that with your chest? Like come on….
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Those were the days!
 
UnitedSofa said:
I long for the days we return to ceefax where we only knew about a signing when they actually signed for the club. Or social media wasn’t as big as it is now.

Would for kill all this hysteria. Just saw a tweet that said “with United set to miss out on a third midfielder….”

Says who? What makes you say that with your chest? Like come on….
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You and me both.
 
Does anyone truly believe Ineos can make us title challengers and show the ambition required to turn this club around?
 
Cee90 said:
Does anyone truly believe Ineos can make us title challengers and show the ambition required to turn this club around?
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No

It’s better to follow the club with zero belief of victory week in week out. Perhaps not even watch them anymore as what’s the point?
 
Cee90 said:
Does anyone truly believe Ineos can make us title challengers and show the ambition required to turn this club around?
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Nope, I've accepted we're going to be a club who hopes to qualify for the cl and have some decent Cup runs. I'm not going to live in a world of fantasy and toxic positivity. Just going to enjoy the games and support the side, we are where we are and pretending we're just another 3 year plan away every year is exhausting
 
Cee90 said:
Does anyone truly believe Ineos can make us title challengers and show the ambition required to turn this club around?
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Define “ambition”, a heavily-invoked word during transfer season.

To most of us, ambition may mean spend more to get either the best players, or those valued the highest by their clubs, or the marquee names. To INEOS, it may mean spending sensibly on the right profiles. I’m not opposed to the latter, so long we address the areas of need- the jury is still out on whether Santos and Tielemans can prove they were good signings- but we do need to round out the squad with at least LB and engine CDM.

Do I want or prefer that strategy? Heck no. But it’s also clear to me INEOS is trying to veer the club to be run as much as a business as they can, as opposed to above its means.

Back your question, we could build a title challenger without the Andersons, Guimaraes, Tonallis, Fernandeses or Halls of the world, but it’s pointless to discuss ambition when the ownership has prioritized “responsible growth” in place of a bottomless transfer kitty.

That boat has left the harbor.
 
astracrazy said:
Isn't our net like £50M with Greenwood and Hojlund.....
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It's about £45m right now.

Behind the likes of Everton, Ipswich, Brentford, Bournemouth, Coventry, Spurs and of course all of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and City.
 
Ali Dia said:
No serious club is ever going to go out and sign 6-10 new players for their first team in any summer and not expect a total and utter car crash of a first 6 months bedding in and eventually a hell of a lot of waste and if you're really unlucky a squad that dont like each other. This is why I said we were playing a blinder yesterday. The signings are clearly under financial constraint but they are considered and still of high quality and the right kind of profile.

Squad Balance is the key. If you really thought we'd go out and spend 5-600 million on players when we already owe a billion and only lost one real first teamer in Casemiro and a player who never played in Ugarte then I don't think anybody should be taking what you say seriously, to be totally fair.

Do we urgently need a backup left back while Shaw is fit and Amass is still at the club and there's Leon in the 23s and Maz and Dalot can both step in too? Calm down. Transfers clearly will happen when there's a good opportunity. Can you name me a few better LBs than Shaw at the monent apart from Hall off the top of your head? The last real chance we had to get someone better to actually take over from Shaw was Nuno Mendes and I was all for it. There's no point buying someone worse than your starter and developing them when you already have similar options
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"Playing a blinder"..... Laughable viewpoint.
 
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