There is a theory in football that transfer fees aren't the true barometer of success, a club's wage bill is. Salaries lead to silverware, and the correlation between what you're paying players and where you finish in the table is considered to be broadly accurate.
But if one club is doing their best to distort that view, it is Manchester United. The club with what is set to again be the second-highest wage bill in the Premier League this season is 13th in the table. It's a lot of money for little return at Old Trafford.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe is set to wield the axe to club employees again soon, cutting a further 100 or so staff from the workforce as part of a second round of redundancies to try and slash expenses at the club. An initial wave of 250 redundancies is expected to bring savings of £40m to £45m a year.
That is a drop in the ocean compared to a wage bill of around £180m a year, however. Staff fearing for their futures at the club can point to underperforming players and wonder why they haven't been on the end of the same ruthless treatment.
That might be changing, however. Ratcliffe is clearly keen to rein in costs at Old Trafford. He insists that is to give Ruben Amorim every possible penny to rebuild this squad, but the 72-year-old has a business background in slashing costs and that is part of the strategy at the club he now controls.
You can guarantee Ratcliffe is looking at the money leaving the accounts every month to fund a mid-table Premier League squad and feeling aghast at those sums. The £25m deal to sign 20-year-old Patrick Dorgu this winter is a sign of things to come. He is a player who fits Amorim's system but is stepping up a level. He has a significant upside but will also sign on a low salary for a first-team player, with the Dane believed to be earning around £40,000-a-week.
That is a strategy shift at United. The club has paid top dollar for wages in recent years, and now they are not just being held back by that wage bill but dragged into financial difficulty as a result.
United's dealings in January hinted at a shift in policy. Dorgu was added to the wage bill but for the next six months, Antony and Marcus Rashford were partially removed from it.
When loan fees and salary contributions are considered, Real Betis will pay 84% of Antony's wages for the rest of the season, and Aston Villa will contribute 75% of Rashford's, which could rise to 90% if add-ons are met. Both of those forwards were earning considerably more than Dorgu.
United's current squad will be on reduced salaries this season after the failure to qualify for the Champions League, but the wage recovery for Antony and Rashford will save the club at least £250,000-a-week.
That will add up to around £6million for the remainder of this season, which, when you consider United's strained economic outlook, is valuable cash heading into a key summer window. The wage bill will be slashed further at that point.
There will be a desperation to finally move on Casemiro and get rid of his £350,000-a-week salary, while the departures of Victor Lindelof and Christian Eriksen could save another £250,000-a-week or so. That is around £31m a year being spent on players who barely get a kick under Amorim.
New arrivals will be required to strengthen this squad, but you can be sure they won't attract the same salaries. It would be a surprise if United moved for any player wanting in excess of £300,000-a-week this summer as Ineos attempt to redraw the wage structure at the club. In terms of bang for their buck, United are getting very little reward for their spending on wages.