Manchester United must buy and sell in January – Samuel Luckhurst

Manchester United has been active in each of Jose Mourinho's January transfer windows. There have been high-profile departures from Morgan Schneiderlin and Memphis Depay in 2017, as well as the unprecedented acquisition of Alexis Sanchez, the acquisition of Alexis Sanchez, 10 months ago, as well as many university departures.

United had previously described January as a "sellers' market", while saying that if the good player became available, he would not hesitate to take the initiative. Such as Sanchez.

Mourinho ended the summer without two of his four priority targets and the uninitiated only have to look at United's conceded goals to guess that any of them was a central defender. Liverpool broke the transfer record for a defender with the £ 75 million Virgil van Dijk in January and United might have to break their own defensive record if they want to strengthen their bottom line.

The United team is riddled with dead wood, but a winter reform is unrealistic. They however need to buy and sell.

Buy

Toby Alderweireld

There was a phone call between Ed Woodward and his counterpart in Tottenham, Daniel Levy, in the summer. Tottenham was asking for information on Anthony Martial and Juan Mata, but United had not considered selling one or the other player, despite tensions between Martial and Mourinho. United's interest in Toby Alderweireld was mediated through intermediaries into the final days of the transfer slot, but they failed to make a decisive breakthrough.

Woodward's reluctance to deal directly with Levy was similar to the way United had negotiated the signing of Chelsea's Juan Mata club record in January 2014. United had rejected Chelsea's bid for Wayne Rooney this summer and Woodward had refused a face-to-face meeting with Chelsea representatives should accept a transfer for Mata, since he felt that it was inevitable that the talks would head to the Rooney territory. The transaction was concluded without a single exchange in person.

Woodward was so strongly opposed to the sale of Martial that it is possible that he avoids any direct contact with Spurs regarding Alderweireld in order to avoid an exchange, which intermediaries have evoked. This would also explain the sudden interest of United for Harry Maguire.

Now, Martial is United 's top scorer this season, a favorite for the year title Sir Matt Busby and United are negotiating a new long – term contract with the Frenchman. If Woodward seals this new deal before January, he can pick up the phone. Levy should not upset United when Alderweireld will have seven months before his 25 million pound release clause is triggered.

Alderweireld will turn 30 in March and the US hierarchy has moved away from Mourinho's short-term recruitment strategy. But the time of a player whose decline began at age 30 is over and United has scored 21 goals in 12 Premier League matches.

The other options envisaged by United – Milan Skriniar of Internazionale and Maguire of Leicester – were valued at an excessive amount of £ 75 million. Both have since signed new contracts.

One before

Ideally, a right winger. Bernardo Silva would have been ideal 17 months ago, but Mourinho, a colleague of the Gestifute, has never shown any concrete interest in the silky Portuguese.

United showed interest in Bordeaux winger Malcom last season, but lost interest as soon as Alexis Sanchez became feasible and the Brazilian joined Barcelona this summer. Willian hovered around United's radar during Mourinho's stay at the club, but that does not seem to be a starter in January.

The interest in Malcom comes from United devoting more resources to the French market and scouts have seen Bordeaux this season. In Lille also, where Nicolas Pepe, the Ivorian international aged 23, caused a sensation. And yes, he is a right winger.

To sell

Matteo Darmian

The "emergency player" from Mourinho played once all season and it was in the opening match of the Premier League. United has not received a suitable offer for Darmian this summer and a top source said he hoped the Italian would stay because he is a "great professional".

Darmian is technically closer to the last six months of his contract, but United has the opportunity for another year. He has been on the bench for the last six games, but the 28-year-old wants to return to Italy and United must reduce his losses while his resale value remains respectable.

"That's what I want," said Darmian to the question of a possible start in July. "But we'll see what happens because we do not know it I want to play more regularly Last season, I did not play much – that's my goal and my ambition." C & # 39; that's why I spoke with the manager and the club about my future.

"Honestly, I'm waiting.If I stay, I stay and I do what I was doing right now.If I go there, it's because the offer of D & I Another team will be good.We must make decisions in our life and that is my decision. "

Since Mourinho used Darmian as the main back, a summer outing seems more likely.

Marcos Rojo

Has there been a more inexplicable or less deserved contract in United's modern history than Rojo's in January? The 28-year-old, who has a tendency to hurt himself, has played more times for Argentina than for United since he scribbled his name in the Carrington Newsroom in March and did not play the game. has not been featured once this season.

Rojo played in 107 of 240 possible United games over his four and a half years with the club and did not play uniformly, with the exception of five months of Mourinho's first campaign.

United tried to sell Rojo three summers out of four (he was injured in the other) and their failure to send him back to Everton in the last window partially canceled the move. United is unlikely to entertain with six central defenders and Rojo could make way for the new center half.

The problem is that United will have trouble making an acceptable profit on an undesirable player whose contract expires in 2021. United bought Rojo for £ 16.5m in 2014 and could have reasonably expected to be around £ 30m £ in summer. His recent inactivity will have lowered his value.