TA: Manchester United’s winter transfer window review and their summer priority

It was a January of major upheaval at Manchester United, with the sacking of Ruben Amorim as head coach followed by Michael Carrick’s appointment until the end of the season.

Their transfer-market activity over those same few weeks was rather more sedate, though, and perhaps that should not come as a surprise.

A reluctance to spend and reshape the squad in his image was one factor in Amorim’s explosive departure. One of his final acts in charge was to tell journalists not to expect any incomings or outgoings before the February 2 deadline. And once the Portuguese had gone, spending big on new signings would arguably have been a risk before deciding on who his permanent successor will be.

Instead, it will fall to Carrick to guide what is already a talented and expensively-assembled squad to potential Champions League qualification.

The information found within this article has been gathered according to The Athletic’s sourcing guidelines.

Sources with knowledge of transfer dealings, who asked to be kept anonymous to protect relationships, have been spoken to before offering the clubs involved the opportunity to comment.

Was their winter window a success or a failure?

Neither, really. It was a non-starter. Manchester United’s stance heading into this mid-season window was that if they had the opportunity to bring forward a move for one of their long-term targets previously pencilled in for the summer, they were prepared to spend.

Otherwise, it was expected to be a quiet month at Old Trafford, and that is how it has turned out. Transfers-wise, at least.

Some may question that logic when United are well-placed in the race to qualify for the Champions League, sitting fourth in the table with 14 games left. You could make a strong argument that now was the time to push the envelope and try to press home their advantage.

United’s decision-makers have been determined to avoid thinking too short-term, though, wary of how such moves have led to an imbalanced squad in the past.

How much did they spend and how much did they bring in?

Nothing spent, nothing really gained either. The only outgoing at anything approaching first-team level was 18-year-old defender Harry Amass’ loan to Norwich City of the Championship until the summer, after playing for Sheffield Wednesday in the same division during the first half of the season, and Toby Collyer’s loan to Hull City.

From a budgeting perspective, the most significant development was confirmation that this will be Casemiro’s final season in Manchester.

The Brazil international midfielder, who turns 34 this month, is one of United’s highest earners, with a salary of around £350,000-a-week in Champions League seasons, and the club could have triggered an option in his contract to extend his stay for another year.

Instead, despite arguably playing as well, and being as important to the team, as he has ever been during his three-and-a-half-year spell at United, he will leave at the end of the campaign in May, freeing up space in the wage budget for other deals.

Are there still any obvious gaps in the team?

Amorim’s sacking has led to a transition from his highly-contentious 3-4-3 system to a more traditional 4-2-3-1 under Carrick. An obvious result of the switch is playing with one fewer centre-back on the pitch and one more midfielder, with captain Bruno Fernandes restored to his natural No 10 position.

Casemiro, Kobbie Mainoo and Manuel Ugarte are the only established central midfield options for Carrick’s double pivot. An injury to one of them would leave United light in the middle of the park. If two of the three were unavailable at once, he would have to find a makeshift solution among the squad or turn to the academy.

If there was a case to make a short-term signing in any position, it was in midfield.

United’s left-hand side is also a little thin following Patrick Dorgu’s hamstring injury against Arsenal on January 25, which is expected to sideline the in-form Denmark international for 10 weeks.

Do they have the squad to achieve their goals for the season?

United’s expectation when the games began in August was to earn a return to European football in 2026-27 after a miserable 15th-place Premier League finish last season meant no continental competition in this one.

As revealed by The Athletic, that target has since been upgraded by Wilcox, who spelt out the importance of Champions League qualification to the players in a meeting on the morning of Amorim’s dismissal. After three back-to-back wins under Carrick, including spectacular victories over City and Arsenal, United currently sit in fourth-place, leading a pack of rivals chasing the same goal.

Though United have been far from perfect this season, and despite there being clear areas in need of strengthening, results would suggest that returning to a competition they have not been part of since a group-stage exit in December 2023 is not an unrealistic aim for this squad.

What will their priority be in the summer?

Carrick has also said he is open to advising on the club’s midfield rebuild, which is all but certain to be the priority in the next transfer window.

United are expected to be in the market for not just one but two midfielders then, with Casemiro’s summer exit confirmed and Ugarte’s future uncertain. Elliot Anderson of Nottingham Forest, Brighton’s Carlos Baleba and Adam Wharton of Crystal Palace are all hugely admired, with Anderson considered to be United’s first-choice target.

Forest, Brighton and Palace were always unlikely to allow one of their best and most valuable players to leave mid-season, but are expected to be more open to doing business once the campaign is over.

United’s left wing could also be looked at: during the talks with him mentioned above, Semenyo was told he would not be played as a wing-back in Amorim’s system if he joined, but as a left-winger in a 4-3-3.

Will they have money to spend?

Yes, but just how much United have at their disposal depends on a variety of factors, not least whether they achieve that return to the Champions League.

The riches that come with playing in European football’s elite club competition would make the summer a lot easier. Miss out and there is every chance they will have to borrow money to buy significantly and dip back into their revolving credit facility — essentially, a bank overdraft — which funded much of last summer’s £215million in spending.

At last count, United had borrowed £295million of a possible £350m under that arrangement, leaving capacity to borrow a further £55m