Manchester United are in their current precarious financial predicament because of the players they didn’t sell well but more importantly, the players they bought who they shouldn’t have.
Thankfully, Ineos’ transfer record at Man Utd seems to be trending on a better path with their signings all proving to be a hit.
However, it can be argued that the single-best decision they took at Old Trafford hasn’t been a player they signed, but one they avoided.
They’ve been vindicated massively since January for not cowering to fan pressure and in Ruben Amorim’s own words, “taking a risk”.
Photo by Ed van de Pol/BSR Agency/Getty Images
Photo by Ed van de Pol/BSR Agency/Getty Images
Man Utd dodged a January bullet
Imagine the scenes. The January transfer window is open, and the Man Utd squad is full of holes, with points leaking like a sieve.
The results keep getting worse but the only players through the door are a 20-year-old left-back from Lecce and an 18-year-old defender from Arsenal with barely any first-team experience.
The noise around United is at a fever pitch – are Ineos letting down another Man Utd manager after a history of Glazers doing the same?
The breaking point for fans comes near the deadline day, when a player who seemed destined for Old Trafford doesn’t just not sign with them, but signs with a direct rival.
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Mathys Tel’s transfer saga dominated the United agenda in the dying embers of the transfer window but after being linked with United throughout, he signed with Spurs instead.
Fans were furious for bottling Tel’s transfer, and the situation was dire. Two months on from that snub, Tel has made that “bottling” look like a masterstroke.
Mathys Tel’s struggles at Spurs
945 minutes across all competitions for Tel has led to a solitary goal, in the FA Cup, as Spurs have somehow managed to go behind United in the Premier League.
What’s even worse for Spurs is that unlike United, where Rasmus Hojlund barely got a sniff at goal, Spurs try to create for the Frenchman but it’s just not clicking.
Add to that the huge loan fee involved with a potential buy option, Spurs have backed themselves into a corner by hedging their bets on a 19-year-old to save their season.
Now that the player is not performing up to scratch, the move looks worse and worse with each passing day, and at the same time, United’s snub looks better and better.
Ineos have been proven right for not bowing down to fan hysteria.