It is still early days, but after more than a decade of aimless spending and panic buying, there seems to be a plan at Manchester United.
It’s not even a week into the “new season” (which begins on July 1st), and United’s transfer window already has taken shape.
There are three concrete targets in Matthijs de Ligt, Manuel Ugarte, and Joshua Zirkzee, and progress has been quick and reliable on all.
Most importantly, all three positions were in desperate need of strengthening on priority so this is a clear win for recruitment planning as well as player identification.
Furthermore, it is likely that these are the signings that will be made from United’s existing transfer budget, which means there will be a likelihood of adding more if United manage to sell some players.
If United manage to make that happen (sell well), there is one signing which will turn this window from “good” to bonafide “elite”.
The £34 million Spanish bargain
It was an open secret that United needed a center-back, a defensive midfielder, and a striker, and the trio of players mentioned above will address those needs.
However, United also played the majority of last season without a recognised left-back.
Granted, United have two on the books in Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia, making it so that last season was a perfect storm of bad luck.
Still, with Shaw’s injury proneness and uncertainty around how Malacia bounces back from such a senior injury, the need for a reliable left-back is understated.
Enter, Miguel Gutierrez, Girona’s flying full-back who had the season of his life last year, and has previously been of interest to the club.
The 22-year-old left-back made 40 appearances across all competitions, scoring twice and assisting nine goals.
He was the architect of Girona’s progressive possession play that saw them go toe-to-toe with La Liga giants in the league.
Perhaps most importantly for United, he has had only one major injury in his career so far, a problem with his meniscus which saw him miss two months in 2022.
That is less than the number of days Shaw missed last season alone, let alone talk about Malacia who was MIA all season.
Gutierrez’s playing style of progressing the ball from deep, being a crossing threat, and being press-resistant is similar to Shaw’s.
These are traits that made the Englishman such a crucial piece of the puzzle for Erik ten Hag so replicable qualities in Gutierrez make him perfect.
At 22, his best years are ahead of him so a reported £34 million deal for him sounds like a no-brainer to add to the trio of players already in question.
Ineos planning clear in this window so far
So far, this window seems like a far cry from the farce of a window that was only recently seen in Ten Hag’s first season.
United infamously spent the whole window negotiating with Barcelona for Frenkie de Jong, ultimately realising after agreeing a deal that the player didn’t even want to join.
The legacy of that failure, a £60 million move for a 30-year-old Casemiro, is an albatross on the books right now.
Similarly, last season United splashed £55 million on a contract-year Mason Mount while there were more pressing needs in the squad.
Injury issues aside, he still doesn’t have a clear place in the squad, especially if Ten Hag persists with the 4-2-2-2 that he ended the season with.
That is just the last two windows with Ten Hag, which were supposed to be “different”. The failure record of the previous Ed Woodward regime is already well-documented.
As such, the current window seems like a breath of fresh air, with three targets identified, worked on simultaneously, and mutual interest in the move clear.
Signing Gutierrez in addition to those three will make this window an unqualified success and if United manage to sell even remotely well, all that could be done with a net spend of less than £100 million.
