The Times reported this week that Manchester United are unlikely to make any signings in January.
The club’s board aim to make big additions in the summer, once bigger decisions are made.
United will decide on a permanent manager in May. They must also decide whether to hire a director of football.
Signing players in January is never easy, but this is a balancing act by all concerned.
(Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
This could in turn help attract better players in the summer, to go along with the reward of Champions League football next season.
What nobody wants is for any panic buys to be made, and needless excess being added to an already inflated wage bill.
United are temporarily at least, back on track in the chase for the top four after a resurgence under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Yet the manager’s interim status is clearly a big reason why the board hedge their bets and hold fire in the transfer market.
(Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
United In Focus readers react
We asked on Twitter if United are making a mistake by deciding provisionally not to spend.
This is probably a good time to ask, before a result against Tottenham at the weekend sways opinion strongly one way or another.
Here is a look at the cross section of responses…
Costly. Mistake
— ashlee chetty (@AshleeChetty) January 10, 2019
No not a mistake! sensible- the players we need are never going to be available in January
— Martin Laste (@lastiemar) January 9, 2019
No, I don’t think so I’d rather give the permanent manager the extra money in the summer
— Gareth (@GT18_) January 9, 2019
Sell what’s not needed. Get 1 CB in and that’ll do until OGS gets the job permanently in the summer and can SPREE!
— Lec (@Leccie03) January 9, 2019
Save money? The Glazers??……….Never!!!!
— Mark Bernard (@MarkBernard84) January 9, 2019
Yes I think so. Need to be active IMO. We definitely shouldn’t be paying overs, but we should be buying to show positive intent.
— George Patrikios (@Socrates921) January 9, 2019
It’s not as black and white as
Mistake ?
Elite players that will massively improve the starting 11 are not going to move in Jan. Or extremely unlikely. Plus the Jan fee would be hideous.
Put faith in what we have
We are capable of nearly going unbeaten
So let’s believe!
— 4EvaRed (@genius1love) January 10, 2019
A top class centre half will be needed in the summer anyway… getting one in now could get us top 4 or an FA cup …
— FPL_Fantasy_Phenom (@fpl_phenom) January 10, 2019
No. The mistake would be buying players who a permanent manager wouldn’t want in the summer and wasting more money on poor signings.
— Murray Gibbon (@MrMGibbon) January 10, 2019
mistake. we badly need a CB right now in any hope of making top 4. unless we already settling for europa
— Ntando Ndebele (@bulawayo_my) January 9, 2019
I don’t like bringing players in in January tbh better to get your deals done early in the summer & give them pre season to gel
— J (@JordanC48609694) January 9, 2019