Erik ten Hag was present at Manchester United’s last game of the previous season and those dismal 90 minutes were enough for him to realize the scope of the job he had inherited.
What followed was a summer of quality recruiting with a firm focus on fixing a leaky defense and solidifying a weak midfield that lacked creativity.
It took a splurge of over £200 million as the Red Devils brought in as many as five permanent recruits and a loan signing to plug the holes in the team.
However, due to years of ineffective recruiting and short-termism, the Dutchman will need at least a few more windows to build a team in his own image.
striker search
January was supposed to be quiet considering the summer outlay on a substitute right-back to provide competition for the ever-present Diogo Dalot, the only possible business that would have been taken care of.
But a major monkey wrench was put in place after last season’s top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo’s incendiary interview and subsequent acrimonious exit.
Now, the coach himself has publicly admitted that the team lacks firepower up front and has called on the club to try to recruit a prominent striker.
???????????? Manchester United are ready to make an inquiry about the availability of Gonçalo Ramos from Benfica, although Ten Hag has been told that a striker is not certain to arrive in January. [@RobDawsonESPN] #MUFC pic.twitter.com/WlWCcQm5YG
— United Update (@UnitedsUpdate) December 14, 2022
But as The Athletic previously revealed, mismanagement by The Glazers meant “United spent £218m on transfers in the three months from 1 July. That left them with £306m pending transfers to other clubs.”
And that means spending big in the winter is out of the question. It wouldn’t have been too big of a problem, but then the World Cup happened.
Prior to the quadrennial masterpiece in Qatar, top targets for United strikers such as Cody Gakpo, Goncalo Ramos and Memphis Depay were very affordable.
As reported by ESPN, “Benfica was considering offers of around 20 million euros before the start of the season” for Ramos. But after his hat-trick for Portugal in their World Cup round of 16 tie against Switzerland, that price has skyrocketed sensationally.
Toilet and financial situation could cost ETH
“Gakpo’s rating has almost doubled after his impressive form in Qatar. PSV Eindhoven quoted United around €30m in the summer, but after three goals for the Netherlands in the World Cup, it is now closer to €50m.”
Even for Depay, Barcelona expects financial gains if it sells its sought-after striker after coming close to mutually agreeing a free start in the summer.
The other options like Joao Félix, who is available after Atlético Madrid confirmed his transfer status, is valued at around €100m, the same as AC Milan hitman Rafael Leao.
Club sources have already indicated that there are no guarantees that a striker will join in January. This is despite United currently being the second lowest scoring team in the top half of the Premier League.
This could cost Ten Hag a chance at a top four finish and a chance at a silver medal, something the manager had not foreseen when he took over the reins at Old Trafford.
