15 April 2024 , 12:28
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Manchester United's latest insipid offering at Bournemouth at the weekend underlined the scale of the task facing Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his team in their bid to take the broken club back to the top.
Ratcliffe and his INEOS team, led by former British cycling guru Sir Dave Brailsford, have already set about restructuring the personnel leading the football operations side at United.
Former chief executive Richard Arnold has gone, to be replaced by ex Manchester City CEO Omar Berrada. Football director John Murtough also went last week, with Dan Ashworth set to take up his role once compensation can be agreed with Newcastle. Jason Wilcox is set to join him as technical director, once a similar financial settlement is reached with Southampton.
One of the biggest tasks facing the new team in charge of the football side at United is ridding the squad of the dead wood that continue to deliver mediocre performances every week. As many as 12 players could – and should – be offloaded this summer, as part of a radical overhaul of the squad.
There is a case for moving on Victor Lindelof, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Raphael Varane, Casemiro, Scott McTominay, Mason Mount, Christian Eriksen, Antony, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial, as well as Mason Greenwood and Jadon Sancho, both currently out on loan.
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Of course, shifting half of the squad and replacing them all in one transfer window is unrealistic, but the number of players who need to be shipped out, simply because they are not good enough, says everything about the abysmal recruitment policy that has blighted United in recent years.
If United manage to get rid of three-quarters of those players this summer, that will constitute a successful window, with upgrades brought in to begin the process of building a squad that is fit for purpose and capable of performing on a consistent basis, rather than sporadically or when it suits them.
Midfielder Casemiro has struggled in his second season at Man Utd and is likely to leave this summer (Visionhaus/Getty Images)Casemiro is a case in point. A five-time Champions League winner with Real Madrid, his experience and leadership was crucial last season in hauling United back into the Champions League and landing a first trophy for six years, but he has regressed and has become a liability rather than an asset.
Varane, also signed from Real, brought similar qualities with him, but is too injury-prone and is currently sidelined again. If he does not play again this season, he will have averaged 19 Premier League starts per season over his three years at United, underling his lack of reliability.
United have a core that can thrive if complemented by better players, in Andre Onana, Lisandro Martinez, Kobbie Mainoo, Bruno Fernandes, Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund, while young defender Willie Kambwala has also shown what a promising prospect he is for the future, even if he was at fault for Bournemouth's opener in Saturday's 2-2 draw.
Bruno Fernandes has been one of Manchester United's few positives in recent weeks (Matthew Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images)But the first task for the new regime at United is to jettison those players on exorbitant wages who the club have struggled to move on in the past, and generate funds that can be reinvested in the squad.
That is something neighbours Manchester City have excelled at over the past decade – not only do they buy well, they sell well. If Ratcliffe and co are serious about re-establishing United as a major force, domestically and in Europe, that is an area that has to be improved – starting this summer.
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