It’s fair to say Manchester United’s dealings in the transfer market have been, at times, shambolic and the club, over the past decade, have been exposed badly in the market.
You could argue United overspent heavily this summer with the additions of Rasmus Hojlund for £64 million and Mason Mount for £55 million, potentially rising to £60 million. In both cases, though, United had to fight to bring the fees down after outrageous initial demands.
The club’s poor dealings in the transfer market arguably began in the summer of Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement. The shambolic attempts to sign Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines in a double deal, according to The Guardian, was a particular lowlight.
Well, after a decade of questionable decisions, it seems United are finally trying to address these issues.
READ MORE: Manchester United transfer history 2013 to present day
United’s plan
According to a report from the Manchester Evening News, Matt Hargreaves, the club’s transfer negotiator, is understood to have told confidants he is trying to establish a new strategy after years of overpaying.
What this new strategy would be remains to be seen and it does seem a bit late in the day after all the overspending the club have done in the past.
He is reportedly railing against the ‘United tax’ that clubs have imposed and has lamented the “extra 0” clubs attempt to add to a player’s valuation when the Red Devils are interested.
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Will it come to fruition
United’s ambitious plan, if you can indeed call it that, is a rather bizarre one. The club were reportedly happy with their summer plans according to the report as there was no drama around their transfer dealings.
The apparent United tax that has been attached to their summer transfer dealings is a result of their own misgivings in the transfer market.
The £80 million United spent on Harry Maguire or the £86 million they spent on Antony are just two examples of United’s ludicrous ove
Overspending in the market and it is nobody else’s fault apart from their own that this ‘tax’ exists.
One way to address it is to target players with reasonable release clauses, where there are no negotiations involved, and the price is pre-determined.