Neville says Manchester United should have signed Luis Diaz

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Manchester United did not make a January signing, largely owing to the uncertainty over who the new long-term manager will be.

Although that might be sensible, it is a symptom of the way that the season has been allowed to drift away.

Bitter rivals Liverpool swooped to sign Luis Diaz, who has hit the ground running at Anfield since arriving from Porto.

And former United defender Gary Neville said on his Sky Sports podcast that he cannot understand why United did not challenge to land the wideman.

“It’s unbelievable. Diaz was going to Tottenham, he’s then gone to Liverpool, there’s not even been a mention of him going to Manchester United,” said Neville.

“United are going to lose Cavani, at the end of the season, they are probably going to lose Pogba, they’ve lost Greenwood, Martial has gone to Sevilla probably going at the end of the season.

“You think they are going to need two or three at the end of the season. Then you watch that lad and he’s not had his best game tonight, but what a player he is.

“Tough, aggressive, works hard, creates chances, his work rate when they lose the ball is unbelievable, he sprints back.”

United were actually linked

In January, Portuguese outlet O Jogo claimed that United were among the clubs scouting Diaz when Porto faced Famalicão.

That day, he scored in a 3-1 win but United clearly did not firm up their interest in the same way as Liverpool, or even Tottenham did. He eventually signed for Liverpool for an initial £37.5 million.

Diaz is exactly the kind of player United could do with in terms of his attitude and intensity but there are bigger issues at play here.

Diaz has slotted straight in at Liverpool because they are a club who do their due diligence on players and pick ones who fit into their approach and formation.

That helps players settle in, even during mid-season when it can be tough to hit the ground running.

Would Diaz have had the same impact at United? In a side under an interim manager without a clear identity, struggling for consistency and unity?

Perhaps but it is far less likely and that sums up the problems which go beyond simply getting the right men through the door.

That said, United have also simply been caught napping on a player who could be a fixture at Anfield for the next ten years on early impressions, and that is not a good look either.