Manchester United have outdone most transfer window predictions so far by signing three quality attackers for more than £200m.
This is a club that Sir Jim Ratcliffe said would have gone bust by December last year had he not intervened and laid some people off.
Now, the spending has crossed £200m, albeit in total investment, not initial outlay, and there are no plans to stop either.
It is fair to say that Man Utd have easily aced half their job in the market at the time of writing, but the next part should begin soon, and will decide how this window will be judged.
Man Utd’s next test in the transfer market
After signing Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo, and Benjamin Sesko, United have addressed their goalscoring troubles, at least on paper.
Those three combined to score more league goals last season than Man Utd did as a team across the league season (48 vs 44), which is a damning statistic.
A midfielder and, if things develop nicely, a goalkeeper are next on the agenda, which is where the next test in the market begins.
“If things develop nicely” is indirect speech for the fact that United need to sell well now, and start doing it soon, since they haven’t made a single penny in incoming transfer fees so far.
Marcus Rashford’s move to Barcelona opens up nearly £14m in wages, but the transfer fee relieves immediate cash stress in a way wage savings do not.
United have four more exiled players on the books, and plenty more they would be happy to listen to offers for, and yet, there have been no sales.
Forget about further signings, if any financial forecast about United before this window was correct, United need to sell now to make sure they survive the outlay they’ve already committed to.
Man Utd’s reputation at stake
Selling well is not just a financial necessity; it is a chance for United to reset their reputation in the seller’s market, like they have already in the buyer’s market.
They’ve shaken off the reputation for being naive while buying players, but the problems in selling remain.
Part of it is down to the exorbitant contracts the Glazers signed off on, but it is also to do with the corner United backed themselves into ahead of the season.
Clubs are waiting like sharks to lowball United for players who have been exiled, and even though Ruben Amorim has warned them against bargains, the need to shift will become urgent soon.
They need to play a fine balancing act of saving face but also getting rid of players in the process by finding a sweet spot in negotiations.
It starts with Alejandro Garnacho, for whom Chelsea are trying to sniff a bargain after selling their players for a king’s ransom.
It can be argued that United have already made a mistake with Rasmus Hojlund’s asking price, while there has been no noise around the likes of Jadon Sancho and Tyrell Malacia recently.
Betis want to do the same as Chelsea are for Antony, so United face extremely tricky waters ahead after acing the buying part of the window.
How they sell will decide the fate of this window going forward from here.
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