Man Utd sloppy recruitment leaves Amrabat transfer on knife-edge
Jacque Talbot
- Updated: 31 Aug 2023 14:18 BST
- 4 min read
At this stage, it’s still not clear whether Manchester United will come back in for Sofyan Amrabat. Fiorentina want the deal done, so does the player, who knocked back other club offers. Erik ten Hag pinpointed the midfielder as the one he wanted for the No.6 position as far back as June.
Man Utd put in a loan offer of around €2million on Wednesday night – of this, only €1m was guaranteed. It was, of course, rejected. Amrabat will be left out of the matchday squad again tonight, as Fiorentina host Rapid Wien for the Europa Conference League second leg.
Whether a deal goes through is another matter. Ten Hag has told Amrabat that he wants him, encouraging the player to stick around. But, with the way things are heading, it seems all that might have been done in vain.
READ MORE: Man Utd Transfer News: Amrabat in TALKS, Cucurella PROGRESS, Gravenberch TARGETED
It’s been a tepid window for Man Utd. They have improved the goalkeeping department – changing David de Gea for Andre Onana was the right thing to do – but other signings have been questionable.
Man Utd are not in a position to take a chance on someone like Rasmus Hojlund, who could well light up the Premier League in years to come. He is a luxury signing, and not in the mould to lead Man Utd across four competitions this season as a No.9. Around €75m went on the Denmark international – an amount that perhaps would have been better spent on a proven attacker who falls into the Ten Hag blueprint of a physical No.9.
Mason Mount was another gamble. Clearly talented, his confidence has been shot at Chelsea and it was never going to be a signing who would hit the ground running, further compounded by his latest injury. Man Utd went in for around €42m initially, they ended up paying €64.2m inclusive of add-ons. Onana cost €52m.
There was likely an anticipation that the takeover would be done, which is why Ten Hag opted to spend so much early in the window. He was granted a budget of around €170m, while, theoretically, if the Glazer debt had cleared, another €70m would be available without FFP concerns.
Top that with the expectation that Anthony Martial, Harry Maguire, Scott McTominay, Donny van de Beek, Anthony Elanga, Fred, and Alex Telles would be moved on for another €120m or so, you start to see why Ten Hag was willing to overpay on some of his targets initially.
Man Utd instead have only made €38.7m back in player sales. West Ham's approach for Maguire and McTominay was a heaven-sent solution, but Man Utd felt that they could get more. Now both players, who Ten Hag earmarked to leave as far back as July, remain.
The club are skint. The idea that Amrabat’s possible move to Man Utd was agent-generated was all nonsense. That’s clear now. He has been the primary candidate for months, and now the club are desperately trying to haggle to offload him with the crumbles that they can afford.
Erik ten Hag’s failed revolution
The whole summer has been a shambles, considering these plans have been drawn up for over a year. The club have had plenty of time. Even if Amrabat does come through the door, the manner in which the club have dealt with it will be one in a long line of windows in which they have proved themselves to be incapable in negotiations. They have, of course, spent money.
READ MORE: Man Utd ready to make BIZARRE transfer
But there seems to be a lack of communication with the coach about what he is going to receive and when; Ten Hag would not have sanctioned some of the moves - such as the one for Mount - if he knew that he would have nothing spare to play with after.
Our information remains the same: Ten Hag wanted Nicolás Tagliafico, another former player of his, for the left-back role, but Man Utd could not afford the obligation to buy that Lyon demanded. Now it’s Marc Cucurella coming into the fold, seemingly on a straight-up loan and compensation fee.
Yes, Ten Hag has spent a bucket load, but that’s half the story when people like John Murtough and the Glazers are the overseers of buying and selling. Man Utd may go back into this fresh season with one hand tied behind their back, once again, and it’s destined to happen again unless some serious changes are made at the top.
