Manchester United's summer is dependent on plenty of variables according to one expert.
INEOS' decision to renew the contract of former boss Erik ten Hag worked against them following a poor start to the season. The Red Devils are hoping new head coach Ruben Amorim can steer the ship until the summer with there still a chance for success in the Europa League and the FA Cup.
But with player exits, stadium and training ground redevelopments plus much more to factor in, just who can Manchester United afford to bring in and who could yet be sacrificed?
Manchester United need time to plan but will that be handed to Ruben Amorim?
The first question to resolve is where the Red Devils strengthen. Simply put, Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund have underperformed this season and links with Sporting forward Victor Gyokeres will not go away.
But spending £70-80m on another unproven Premier League forward may not be the best play in the INEOS transfer booklet and Amorim especially needs talent that will hit the ground running to help best compliment his team as a whole.
"Jonathan David could be a possibility for Manchester United if they look more for something on a free transfer that doesn't break the budget," began transfer expert Ben Jacobs, speaking to FourFourTwo on January 13. "Evan Ferguson is a long-standing Manchester United target and when he's fit during the summer, he might be available for less than half of the £100 million price tag that Brighton had 18 months ago.
"So lots of options will be explored, but position-wise, I think we're looking at a no.9, a left back, depending on what happens with Bayindir, a no.2 goalkeeper – then everything else will be influenced by outgoings.
"If Lindelof goes and with Maguire’s contract only being extended until 2026, it's not unthinkable that they still look at another centre-back. Casemiro’s departure could lead them to look at another midfielder.
"And obviously, with Anthony, Rashford and Garnacho, if two of those three departed, then there becomes an urgent need to find a versatile wide forward. So this is why it's quite a complicated situation with Manchester United, because there's a lot of variables at the moment and not a lot of budget, but I do think they will do all they can in January to support Amorim."
In FourFourTwo's opinion, Manchester United will want to wait until the summer to properly assess who stays and who goes, given the time pre-season gives them as a whole. We can expect plenty of exits but the funds given to Ten Hag in 2024 may not be available for Amorim.
Manchester United are in Premier League action on Thursday as they take on Southampton at the Theatre of Dreams.
