Ineos’ transfer philosophy has brought them a lot of plaudits after chaos underlined Glazers at Man Utd, but one player is increasingly personifying the flipside of that same operation.
Ruben Amorim has consistently echoed the Glazers’ message that all purchases and sales will be made with a long-term view of the club.
It has resulted in the club pivoting away from chasing short-term fixes, of which there were plenty under the Glazers.
However, the one flipside of that transfer philosophy is beginning to rear its head in the form of an uncomfortable question.
Patrick Dorgu, Noussair Mazraoui, Kobbie Mainoo and Ayden Heaven warm up ahead of the Premier League match between Nottingham Forest and Manchester United at City Ground in 2025 in Nottingham, England.
Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images
Patrick Dorgu set the tone for Ineos’ philosophy
By looking at the long-term health of the club, Ineos’ transfers have mainly been for players on the younger side as they set about building the spine of the team.
None of the players signed under Ineos are over 30, and that tone was set by their first senior signing at the club – Patrick Dorgu.
Dorgu was an anomaly when he signed, arriving as an untested 20-year-old from relegation-threatened Lecce and becoming the club’s first-choice wing-back straight away.
It was the leap of faith that United rarely showed in youngsters in their transfer philosophy, and Man Utd fans were happy to be patient with him.
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For his part, Dorgu showed glimpses of potential that warranted patience, with the hope that he would eventually kick on in a new season.
After he started the pre-season brilliantly, however, Dorgu’s form has been extremely inconsistent, losing his starting spot to Diogo Dalot until recently.
Some nice displays won him that spot back, but he failed against Everton again to continue his theme of one step forward, two steps back.
The risk with Dorgu is catching up to the reward
Taking bets on youngsters is appreciable, but the environment at Old Trafford demands impact from the word go.
Even in cases like that of Dorgu, where his potential warrants patience, very rarely does that patience hold strong for more than a year.
Dorgu has now been at the club for about ten months, and in the absence of growth in his game, the risk with signing a young player is catching up to the potential reward.
It’s all very idealistic to ask why United don’t go the Brighton/Brentford route of buying young players and trusting them with minutes, but the environment is completely different.
Players like Sekou Kone or Diego Leon might have played in the Premier League straightaway for those teams and made mistakes to become better players eventually.
United’s demands don’t allow that level of ease and flexibility, and they are beginning to see it with Dorgu, about whom questions are starting to get asked.
Man Utd fans will still want him to realise his potential, but with every poor game, the flipside of Ineos’ “bet on potential” transfer philosophy is becoming clearer.