The Red Devils need to be active and smart in the summer to ensure they do not repeat their diabolical 2024-25 campaign
"I said the storm is coming," Ruben Amorim reminded Manchester United supporters inside Old Trafford after their miserable 2024-25 campaign had finally come to an end. "Today, after this disaster season, I want to tell you the good days are coming."
United fans had every right to boo the manager for overseeing their worst campaign in 51 years, but instead his speech was greeted with a guttural roar. Now, though, the Portuguese and the club's executives need to get to work in the transfer window to make sure Amorim delivers on that promise.
The Red Devils are in a hole of their own making given that they hired Amorim in the middle of the season while well aware of the type of football he wanted to play. United's squad was totally unsuited to the coach's vision and lacked players with the athletic capacity to cope with his physically intense style. Now, though, have a summer for Amorim to remould the squad in his image.
However, he likely won't be able to pull off the rebuild he would like due to the club's financial problems and the danger of breaking the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules, especially after United lost the Europa League final to Tottenham and missed out on the golden ticket of Champions League qualification and the cash bonanza that would have accompanied it.
United have a reported budget of £100 million ($134m) for their transfer activities and they have already secured the signing of Matheus Cunha from Wolves for £62.5m ($84m), although that will be paid for in three separate installments. The club can increase their budget, of course, by selling players, while some space in the wage bill has already been freed up by the departures of Christian Eriksen, Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans after their contracts expired.
With all that taken into consideration, GOAL has outlined the key areas United must address in the summer transfer window to ensure another storm does not gather over Old Trafford next season:
Getty Sign a new striker
It shouldn't be the case just two years after spending £72m ($97m) on Rasmus Hojlund, but the fact is that United need a new centre-forward. The Dane played 52 games in all competitions this past season, but ended the campaign with just 10 goals, only four of which came in the Premier League. Hojlund did not even have the silver lining – as Joshua Zirkzee did – of helping United's build-up play and setting up goals – he registered just two assists, neither of which came in the league.
Despite receiving encouraging signs in their pursuit of Brentford's Bryan Mbeumo after securing a deal for Cunha, the Red Devils still need a starting striker for their potential two new wide players to play off of. The Red Devils went to great efforts to convince Liam Delap on a move to Old Trafford, but Chelsea have subsequently won the race for the highly-coveted Ipswich Town striker.
Patrik Schick, who scored 21 Bundesliga goals for Bayer Leverkusen last term, has emerged as an alternative option in a similar price bracket, although the 29-year-old does not fit the age profile the club are looking to attract. Amorim's former Sporting CP hitman, Viktor Gyokeres, remains out there as an option, too, though United's lack of European football may end up ruling them out of the running for the Swede. Regardless, United must prioritise finding a new No.9 because Hojlund has simply not lived up to the promise he showed at Atalanta before arriving in England.
AdvertisementGetty Raise funds through winger sales
Last summer, United had just one unwanted winger in Jadon Sancho. Now they have four widemen they must sell, partly due to Amorim's style of play and partly due to personality clashes between the manager and the individual players. Whatever the reason, the club now need to offload Sancho, Marcus Rashford, Antony and Alejandro Garnacho for the best price possible.
It remains to be seen whether Chelsea will trigger the £25m ($34m) obligation in Sancho's loan deal or pay to renege on the move after his underwhelming season at Stamford Bridge. Rashford, meanwhile, enjoyed a more positive loan spell at Aston Villa, although finding a club willing to pay £40m ($53m) for him is proving tough.
Antony has revitalised his career at Real Betis, and even if the Conference League runners-up are unsuccessful in their plans to make the move permanent, there will be more demand for the ex-Ajax star from around Europe after he earned a Brazil recall off the back of scoring nine goals for Los Verdiblancos. Garnacho, however, should attract both the most interest and the highest transfer fee of the four players, even though he is being forced out by Amorim.
United's director of negotiations, Matt Hargreaves, has a big job on his hands trying to get the best deals possible for the unwanted quartet, as Amorim's rebuild hinges on the club boosting their transfer kitty through player sales.
Getty Images SportBuy at least one new goalkeeper
United thought they had resolved their goalkeeping situation when they signed Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir in the summer of 2023 after withdrawing the offer of a new contract for David de Gea. The call, made by Erik ten Hag and backed up by former sporting director John Murtough, has proved to be a total disaster.
Onana has made a catalogue of costly errors since his £47m ($63m) arrival from Inter, and atfter Nemanja Matic called him "one of the worst goalkeepers in Man United's history", the Lyon midfielder was cheered onto the Old Trafford pitch when the two teams met in the Europa League quarter-finals.
Amorim took Onana out of the firing line following his errors against the French side, but Bayindir performed so badly in relief that it became clear United need two new 'keepers this summer, not just a new No.1. Whether their budget will stretch that far, however, remains unclear.
The most likely scenario is that United will sell Bayindir and sign a new shot-stopper to push Onana for the No.1 spot. Emi Martinez is a tempting option as he looks set to leave Aston Villa, but his crazy sending off on the final day of the season at Old Trafford provided a timely reminder that the Argentine can make baffling mistakes. He would also demand a huge salary for a player who turns 33 in September, and thus United should instead go after a young, capable goalkeeper who is on the rise, such as Brighton's Bart Verbruggen or Lille's Lucas Chevalier.
Getty Images SportMake their minds up on Mainoo
Amorim has decided he no longer wants Garnacho at the club, but the future of the Argentine's fellow FA Youth Cup winner, Kobbie Mainoo, remains unclear. Amorim's sparse use of Mainoo since he returned from injury in April – he did not start him in any of the Europa League knockout matches – suggests he does not rate the England international and confirms the belief that he would be happy to sell Mainoo for the right price following reports that he was up for sale during the January transfer window.
Selling local boy Mainoo would be a hugely unpopular move among fans, and Gary Neville has already warned United against it, saying: "I start to question things if we can’t make Kobbie Mainoo into a football player, and we’d be selling him. I know it’s become a thing now whereby people sell players from their academy to facilitate PSR and Financial Fair Play, but if Manchester United start to sell academy players to raise funds to bring in other players, I think that’s the thin end of the wedge."
However, if Amorim genuinely does not believe that Mainoo fits into his style of play, then the coach should tell the club executives and find a suitable buyer for the 20-year-old. Mainoo has huge sell-on value and United should cash in on him quickly so they have time to reinvest the money in the best way possible.
