The deadline has come and gone, and that's that for business until the summer. What was poised to be a month of promise from a transfer standpoint for Manchester United, with a whole host of names drawn up at the start of January, has turned into another instance overridden by inadequacy. You wouldn't be ridiculed to argue that United actually leave the window in worse stead than they entered it in.
It was a month dominated by outgoings, with a lack of necessary incomings infuriating supporters to the greatest extent. Despite the glaringly obvious need to bolster the defensive midfield department, with numerous options there for the taking, the same issue stands that United are without a recognised 'number six' heading into the second half of the campaign.
In the meantime, though, a number of loan moves have been sanctioned - in fairness of benefit to the players involved and the club alike. However, stubbornness amongst the hierarchy has also caused a number of breakdowns, and need for compromises at the very least, meaning maintenance of discontent already riddled within the dressing room.
Jesse Lingard's month was up, down, here, there and everywhere for the most-part. Ultimately, a loan move to Newcastle United was not allowed after Mason Greenwood's suspension following his arrest on Sunday.
It was unfortunate for Lingard that he didn't get his move, but there could be opportunities for him at United over the course of the rest of the season given the lack of options in the attacking department amplified by the Greenwood situation. Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Anthony Elanga would otherwise essentially be the only other first team wide options; one has been short of confidence, another still adapting to English football, and the last wildly inexperienced. Lingard is clearly not happy and bridges have been burned with United, but he won’t be out of the picture and may be an important asset.
There had already been what seemed like numerous collapses in negotiations between United and Newcastle before the final breakdown on Monday night, with United reported to have rejected offers from Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United. Ralf Rangnick approved an exit for Lingard, who will now run down his contract and leave for free in the summer, yet United were never going to sell to a top four rival. Newcastle were the only viable option - and Lingard wanted the move - but it wasn't to be.
The players' brother posted an Instagram story suggesting Lingard was on "day release" during his loan move to West Ham last season, one year on from the switch. However, as late as the start of the January window, it has been reported that Lingard had made it clear that he wanted to stay at United. By contrast, sources close to his possible move to Newcastle suggest Lingard wished to leave on loan in January after discussions over a new contract at United ended in November.
In any eventuality, implying that he was kept a prisoner is surely wide of the mark. The player himself even spoke of willingness to stay and fight towards the start of the season.
In fairness, though, reports have suggested that United were asking for lots. Not just lots, absurdly excessive amounts. A £15million package was rumoured. For a loan.
United apparently requested a £12million 'survival bonus' for if Newcastle were to stay in the Premier League. Even more ludicrously, reports suggested that United were after a fee of up to £50million if Lingard was to depart permanently. Given he has been devoid of much playing time over recent years, you can see why that could be classed as ridiculous.
Hereby, maybe you could argue the month, at least, turned into a hostage situation of sorts. Rightly, Lingard has been said to be frustrated at unfulfilled promises under two managers this season. Sources suggest he has been treated badly, with Lingard's camp 'incensed' and suggesting he has been treated like 'commercial property'.
By contrast, Donny van de Beek finally found an escape route of sorts. It seemed almost a scrap between Everton and Crystal Palace to gain his signature on loan, with ignorance of loan options given the Dutchman's will to prove his aptitude in the Premier League. He was widely wanted, which will be of great value to him.
Given Frank Lampard's appointment at Everton, Van de Beek was essentially attracting interest from two of the Premier League's all-time great midfielders. For a player short of belief after a torrid time at United, the interest will have provided a significant confidence boost. No doubt, both Lampard and Patrick Vieira would have had the ability to have a huge influence on the Dutchman; however, it was Everton who won the race in the end, with Van de Beek keen on playing under Lampard due to parallels within their games.
"I had a really positive meeting with the new coach," Van de Beek said. "We have the same ideas about football and he had a lot of influence on my decision. I played against him when I was at Ajax, and he was at Chelsea [as manager], so he knows me as a player. He thinks I have qualities that can help the team. I can learn a lot from him because he was a little bit in the same position - a midfield player who scored a lot of goals."
"I hope to bring my football qualities, my passing, and, of course, scoring goals. It is a big part of my game to score and give assists and I will try to do that again. It is not only offensive, you have to defend as a midfielder and I can do that as well."
The similarity between Conor Gallagher and Van de Beek may have been deemed a threat to the United midfielder's playing time if he was to move to Palace, which was a possible contributing factor to the decided move to Everton. However, Everton also announced the permanent signing of Dele Alli on deadline day, which was unexpected given Van de Beek’s acquisition. The purpose of the United man's switch to Everton was for gametime, so it would be another injustice if he was to be robbed of that.
Furthermore, it shouldn't be tough to settle at Everton. The club is still in the north-west, so Van de Beek won't have to move house. There is no buy option in the deal - he still seems to have a future at United if he proves a success at Goodison Park.
Everton will be paying Van de Beek's full salary, with a loan fee providing further financial benefit to United.
The same can be said for Anthony Martial, who has made a loan switch to Sevilla. It is another bit-part and discontent player entirely removed from the wage bill, even if it took considerable amounts of time to reach a compromise. There was no loan fee paid by the Spanish side but a €6million total package for the Frenchman's salary.
No buy option has been included in Martial's deal either, though almost guaranteed gametime across Sevilla's front line is a chance to impress suitors, or even United's prospective manager. You never know.
Bare in mind, Sevilla are actually in a title race of forms in Spain - second by only four points to Real Madrid. In the meantime, there is also Europa League football to fulfill. It is a monumental opportunity for Martial to prove himself after a considerable period of time on the very fringe of this United side.
There should also be a mention for Amad Diallo, who has made a temporary switch to Scotland to play for a Rangers side that have also signed Aaron Ramsey from Juventus. It is a challenge physically similar to the Premier League, with hope that Amad will gain experience of British first team football that has eluded him thus far. Don't forget. United paid a fee in the realms of £30million to sign the Ivorian from Atalanta, even though he had barely played as many senior minutes.
Even though fitness may have let him down, replaced with a seeming fatigue-centred knock around the 65 minute mark, Amad impressed on his debut away to Ross County. He scored opportunistically only five minutes into the match, with his skillful cut inside and shot later leading to a James Tavernier goal.
At the time of writing, Amad is starting in the Old Firm Derby against Celtic.
Phil Jones looked all set to join Bordeaux for the remainder of the season, with Rangnick granting permission for the move to go ahead - as with Lingard. United weren't even going to burden the French club financially (in terms of a loan fee or large wage percentage), with the hope that a move would aid Jones in his bid to get his career back on track. Bordeaux was an opportunity for Jones to get some consistent minutes, but he strangely rejected the move when it was only steps away from completion. He showed promise on his return to action against Wolves but, as with Eric Bailly, minutes will remain limited with Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof favoured options ahead.
Dean Henderson has had a tough season so far, second to David de Gea and unhappy about his playing time. After plenty of resistance from Rangnick, it seemed he may be able to snatch a loan move as the deadline approached. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be for the goalkeeper, who won't be content with a place on the bench for the remainder of the season after possible moves away to Newcastle and Watford were ultimately blocked.
When all is said and done, it's impossible to deem the window as a success. Loan moves for Martial, Van de Beek and Amad are all positive, but you can't help but think there remain players at the club discontent, missing an opportunity to prove a point ahead of the winter's World Cup in Qatar. Financially, the club have shipped off some extortionate wages, yet permanent moves, thus fees, for the likes of Lingard have been missed out on as contracts run down.
The major issue, though, has been recruitment. The lack of it. The inactivity in the buying market in comparison to other teams is of concern, with the squad emptied without much replenishment. It has gone from a mass of depth to being right on the verge of being too slim a squad to be sustainable for the next five months or so. On one hand, Rangnick has been known to favour working with a smaller squad. On the contrary, the German has openly spoken about wanting to maintain squad depth in case of particular circumstances such as Covid outbreaks or a considerable amount of injuries.
Van de Beek had to get his loan move - that was fine. However, United are now incredibly bare in midfield, still without a recognised 'number six' aside from the ageing Nemanja Matic; Scott McTominay, Fred and the returning Paul Pogba are the only remaining midfielders.
It is said that no desired targets became attainable, though United had the opportunity to sign both Denis Zakaria and Boubacar Kamara having been offered the midfield pair through the window. The focus has been put substantially on the summer's business, almost neglecting this season's top four challenge, plus FA Cup and Champions League prospects.
Rejecting the offer to sign an established defensive midfielder is mystifying. There is a gaping hole in United's midfield. For both Zakaria and Kamara, there was merely requirement of paying low fees for relatively young players proven enough in the position we need. If the moves were not to work out, United could likely still sell them on and still make a bigger purchase come the summer (Declan Rice and Aurelien Tchouameni remain options). The whole structure of the club has again been exposed as simply diabolical.
Although attacking areas were not a priority for upgrades, opportunities also went begging here. River Plate's Julian Alvarez was offered to United, who didn't pursue - the Argentine ended up joining Manchester City. More complicated, but United also had a chance to sign Barcelona's Ousmane Dembele, though his wages and injury history were viable drawbacks.
No matter, United will have to look at adding some force to the attacking departments at the end of the season. Barring a spectacular revival in Spain, Martial will likely be on his way out - as will Lingard and Edinson Cavani as they reach the end of their respective contracts. Cristiano Ronaldo still has a further year on his contract, though it's not out of the question that he could depart if Champions League football is not secured. Alvarez would have been an innovative investment.
Really, January was always going to be an odd window given the lack of a permanent manager in place. In six months or so, there will likely be someone other than Rangnick at the helm.
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