Manchester United are deep into their pre-season, having played three out of the five games scheduled before they take on Manchester City in the Community Shield.
The coaches and player are doing their part on the field, but the squad still needs a lot of work off the field in terms of transfers.
Two signings have been secured and some departures have paved the way for more, but nothing has happened beyond Leny Yoro and Joshua Zirkzee.
With the season’s first competitive fixture in less than two weeks, the clock is ticking and it seems United are well aware of the urgency.
Fabrizio Romano’s Man Utd transfer update
Amid United being linked to a barrage of names, as is customary at Old Trafford for any transfer window, it is important to separate fact from fiction.
Fabrizio Romano remains one of the most reliable voices in the transfer market and as August nears, he has dropped an exciting transfer update for Man United that will have fans looking out for developments.
On his YouTube channel, Romano said “many things could happen [this] week” as United are working on “several deals”.
He said it remains to be seen if there is time for any “Here We Go” but the progress is there and fans can expect developments in this “very important week”. [Video bit from 32s]
The first order of business looks to be Noussair Mazraoui, who has reportedly reached an agreement with United and the club-to-club negotiations are nearing completion too.
That will have a direct effect on Aaron Wan-Bissaka‘s future, who is expected to join West Ham United.
Then, a sale of a center-back, likely Victor Lindelof, could pave the way for Matthijs de Ligt where a transfer agreement over the fee remains a stumbling block.
Ugarte interest in the background could come to the fore again if PSG accommodate their demands as they are interested in Joao Neves, while Jadon Sancho remains one to keep an eye on.
All in all, it is shaping up to be quite a busy first week of August as United will try to get most of their business in order before August 10, when they face City.
Glazer era is well and truly gone
An important thing to note in this update is that United are working on several deals at the moment at the same time.
It is a departure from the Glazer era and their practice which frustrated fans the most, as they were notorious for working on one deal at a time.
It led to panic stations in situations when the deal fell through and there was no preparation/groundwork for a backup option.
Antony’s £85 million transfer or, going further back, buying Marouane Fellaini for a fee £4 million higher than his expired release clause are huge case in points.
By working on multiple deals at the same time, United retain the power to to walk away from deals if they deem the demands unreasonable.
That is what happened with Jarrad Branthwaite and Everton, as they managed to convince Leny Yoro to make the move and retain an interest in De Ligt.
It also enabled them to steal a march on AC Milan for Joshua Zirkzee, where they took advantage of a release clause that would have otherwise expired on August 1.
After moving on from the Glazer era, this big deficiency has been addressed and the results are clear to see. Now an exciting week begins!
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