Arsenal have Jesus. Tottenham have Bissouma. Man City have Haaland and Liverpool have Nunez. These clubs have quietly secured their main targets. On the other hand, United have been all over the place without a clear strategy.
Manchester United had one of their worst ever Premier League seasons last year. It isn’t hidden that Ten Hag getting United into the top four would be deemed a successful campaign. However, despite signing one of the best up-and-coming managers in the world, the United hierarchy have been unable to provide him with necessary resources.In this article we shall see why Spurs’ superior window so far is posing a major threat to United.
1) Early Signings Boosting Pre-season
Earlier this week, Spurs completed the signing of Clement Lenglet on loan from Barcelona. The Frenchman became Conte’s 5th signing of the Summer, after securing Perisic, Forster, Bissouma and Richarlison earlier. On the other hand, United have jetted off to Thailand with only 1 new signing – left-back Tyrell Malacia from Feyenoord. United have wasted 2 months negotiating for Frenkie de Jong, a player who doesn’t necessarily want to leave FC Barcelona.
Fabio Paratici, the Managing Director of Football for Tottenham, has been very direct. The Italian has not only signed the players before the preseason starts, he has shown the ambition of the club to Antonio Conte who is set to stay and fight for trophies next season.
2) Signing players in position of need
The signing of Malacia means that United now have 3 left-backs, with Alex Telles looking the most probable to leave. Despite being on the verge of signing Eriksen, Martinez and Strakosha, United still have to address the CDM, RW, ST and RB positions. Fans are not happy with how the board has failed to show ambition after a disastrous season. Tottenham on the other hand have spent smartly and got the profiles they needed to fill the gaps, most importantly the midfield, with Yves Bissouma joining the club.
3) Chopping off the deadwood
According to Fabrizio Romano, 4 Spurs players – Winks, Reguilon, Lo Celso and Ndombele – have been left out of the tour. Ajax also signed Steven Bergwijn earlier this week. Their quality indicates that Conte has been given authority to offload any player that doesn’t fit his football philosophy. At United though, the keys are with a person who wants to keep an unhappy Ronaldo just to reap profits. Although, there has been some change, with the club offloading Pogba, Lingard, Henderson, Cavani, Grant, Mata and Matic. But now, to individually replace these profiles, United still have 7 more signings to make.
Conclusion
Manchester United have a lot to do in the remaining part of the transfer window. It is hard to even think of competing against Chelsea, Tottenham, Arsenal, etc., for top 4 next season. These clubs have not only sorted out the present, but are now building for the future. United on the other hand have been unable to sort out the present for over a decade.
At this point it looks likelier for United to win the Europa League rather than attain qualification through the league. United should look to sign Sangare, Antony, Scamacca and Dumfries to even think of having a successful season next year. United have to make their move right now to give ten Hag a chance to develop the signings.
