Former England manager Sam Allardyce has admitted that he is surprised that Manchester United did not sign a “proven” talent in the summer transfer window.
Manchester United reinforced significantly in the summer for Red Devils former manager Erik ten Hag, who was sacked by the Premier League club last week.
French defender Leny Yoro and Netherlands striker Joshua Zirkzee arrived at Old Trafford from Lille and Bologna respectively in July.
Erik ten Hag was also reunited with two former Ajax players in the summer, with United signing Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui from Bayern Munich.
United agreed a deal worth nearly £60m to bring former Ajax duo Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui to Old Trafford in August.
The Red Devils completed their spending spree with their deadline-day signing of Manuel Ugarte from Paris Saint-Germain for a fee that could reach £50.5m.
Allardyce on Man Utd and transfer target
Despite the heavy reinforcements to Manchester United’s first-team squad, Erik ten Hag endured a difficult start to the 2024-25 Premier League season.
The 54-year-old Dutchman’s spell ended last month after the shock 2-1 Premier League defeat to West Ham at the London Stadium.
Ruud van Nistelrooy became United interim manager ahead of Sporting CP boss Ruben Amorim permanently succeeding Ten Hag at Old Trafford.
Speaking on the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast, Sam Allardyce admitted that he was surprised United did not push ahead with signing Jarrad Branthwaite.
Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite was heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford and United stepped up their pursuit of the 22-year-old English centre-back.
United had a £35m bid rejected for Branthwaite in June before Everton dismissed a £45m offer from the Red Devils in July.
The Toffees were believed to be holding out for a fee of around £75m for the Everton star, with United ending their interest in Branthwaite in the summer.
“It was a big surprise that nobody spent the money on him in the summer, a left-footed centre-half, particularly at Man United,” Allardyce said.
“You’d have thought that whoever wanted a centre-half who’s proven himself to be able to play in the Premier League, and his capabilities are getting even better.
“It was a big, big miss for a lot of those big clubs. With Everton’s financial problems, somebody thought they could nick him at a bargain buy.”
Van Nistelrooy’s influence on Branthwaite
Jarrad Branthwaite spoke highly of the impact that United legend Ruud van Nistelrooy had on him during his loan spell at Dutch side PSV Eindhoven.
“He was brilliant for me,” he told The Times in 2023.
“At the midpoint in the season, I hadn’t played as much as I would have liked. I had a clause in my contract where I could have come back here [to Everton] and, having hardly played, I said I wasn’t not sure what I was going to do.
“He sat me down for half an hour and said I was going to play every game in the second half of the season. At the time, I was like, ‘You can say that, but how am I meant to believe you?’
“We were on a winter break, I was on holiday, and he kept ringing me every day, saying, ‘Trust me, you are going to play.’
“I sat down with my mam, dad and my agent and said he wouldn’t go to all this effort if he wasn’t going to play me. I decided to trust him and it worked out well.
“He would speak to me about my body shape when defending and the importance of being side on, so that I am always ready to run back or be ready to press forward.
“He said if you don’t have the right body shape, you will get done because the Premier League is much faster. If they play it in behind and you are not side on, the striker will already be gone.”
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