With a deal for Casemiro already wrapped up, Manchester United are closing in on a move for his Brazil teammate Antony. A deal is now agreed, report BBC Sport.
The double signing is a best case scenario, especially when considering how United fans were in the pits of despair three weeks ago.
After the club’s 2-1 loss to Brighton to open the season, it appeared the club were planning an immediate response. It just wasn’t what United fans wanted.
BBC Sport reported the club were keen to sign Marko Arnautovic, while a deal was also agreed with Juventus for midfielder Adrien Rabiot, The Guardian reported. How did United go from that to this?
READ MORE: Confirmed Manchester United transfers, ins, outs, loans, releases for 2022/23
Double deal for Casemiro and Antony
Manchester United’s switch from a possible Arnautovic and Rabiot move to Casemiro and Antony is a gigantic upgrade.
It’s also considerably more expensive, with the two deals costing United £140 million, compared to the £30 million it would have required to sign Arnautovic and Rabiot.
Each deal broke down for their own reasons. With Arnautovic there was huge fan backlash, while with Rabiot, it was his own wage demands which saw United walk away after John Murtough had flown out to negotiate personally.
What was refreshing was United’s change of tact. Rather than pursue different budget options, United scaled up their ambitions, loosening up the budget, and spending big on two genuinely top quality players.
The reason for United’s change of approach
There were two key factors behind Manchester United’s change of ambition, prompted by an awful start to the season with two straight losses.
Manager Erik ten Hag will have pushed hard behind the scenes for reinforcements. It was very clear he was left hamstrung by Manchester United’s poor transfer business, with no midfielder and no top level attacker signed.
It was clear Manchester United’s decision makers were at fault, having invested months into a failed pursuit of Frenkie de Jong. They simply could not afford to give Ten Hag the squad they did. John Murtough and Richard Arnold would have come under huge pressure to lose their jobs.
The worst case scenario would have been for Ten Hag to walk, or for his project to collapse in on itself and fail within months. The first two results of the season were a warning. United had to go big.
The second aspect to the turnaround, were the fans. Vociferous online frustration was backed, crucially, by The 1958’s concerted campaign to protest relentlessly, turning pressure onto the Glazers.
There was that bizarre day with Elon Musk joking about buying United, followed by Sir Jim Ratcliffe declaring his intention to buy the club. This hasn’t led to any change in ownership yet, but it did plenty to energise the fanbase and heighten the building anti-Glazer frustration.
The big deals are United’s way of deflecting attention. While they will generate excitement and improve the team, they can’t erase the botched way the club approached this transfer window, and the bizarre path which got us here.
If the Glazers had it their way, it would have been Rabiot and Arnautovic lining up at Old Trafford, not Casemiro and Antony.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
