Premier League Shorts

By Abiye Opuamah.

Three wins, two draws and a loss against a wily Atletico de Madrid side in pre-season and suddenly it felt like Manchester United were finally clawing their way up from the depths of unremitting despair that they’d found themselves in for the greater part of last season.

A semblance of the swagger reminiscent of their glory days for a really brief spell looked a possibility but it was soon shattered when Brighton came to town to give them a rude awakening. United suddenly realised the folly of believing the hype around pre-season results and the scramble for who was available to buy went into a bit of an overdrive.

It looks like it has eventually dawned on United that Frankie de Jong, a player they had coveted all summer now looks almost certain to remain in Barcelona or sign for rivals Chelsea so they are now left with the rather unsettling prospect of rummaging in the transfer market for the lean pickings of players that are not necessarily bad but not among kind of elite players fans of the club would have been expecting to join in this transfer window.

If the rumours making the rounds are to be believed, United have reached an agreement with Juventus to sign Adrien Rabiot, a player who to all intent and purposes has become surplus to requirement at the Italian club after the arrival of fellow countryman Paul Pogba from Manchester United. Austrian striker, Marco Arnautovic is another whose name has been linked with the Red Devils over the last few days but after having seen the backlash from fans against the prospect of signing the 33 year old striker, it seems like the United board prudently decided to no longer pursue the deal.

It’s shambles, and there is no doubt that the United board is clearly in panic mode. Keeping their powder dry until this stage in the season highlights a decision making process that is flawed. It is either that they have not learned a lesson from the previous disastrous season or are perhaps just too cautious about spending big like rivals around them have already done.

Hedging their bets on Frenkie de Jong joining is a risk that looks more likely to fail than it is achievable especially when the player himself has hardly showed a desire to join the club. United have more pressing issues in other areas of the pitch and one could argue that they need a striker more in light Ronaldo’s recent petulance and a midfield destroyer than a De Jong who though a good midfielder hardly fits the profile.

United’s board of directors don’t seem to have learned a lesson from last season’s disaster and it’s hard to argue against the sentiments that the signs don’t look good for them. If something is not done to address the imbalance in the team before the end of the transfer window, there’s no doubt that this too could be a really chastening season for the club.