Manchester United - A Transfer Period to forget?

We have all seen how Manchester United have miserably failed in the transfer market this season. To some extent that is true, keeping in light the fact that United have failed to land their major targets at Old Trafford this summer. From the more open pursuit of Cesc Fabregas, to the discreet efforts of signing Thiago Alcantara, Manchester United have not even come close to signing their targets. In many ways, this was a transfer period worth forgetting and learning from.

With the departure of both Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill, Manchester United were always going to lack the edge in the transfer market that they had before, despite the huge financial backing. The new manager David Moyes is no doubt a good manager and needs no introduction, but when compared to SAF, it’s obvious that he doesn’t have the same command and aura that SAF had on others, both players and managers. At the same time, when we look into the board of Manchester United, we no longer have the experience and contacts of David Gill.

Although Ed Woodward is a highly respected figure in the financial world, he is no David Gill when it comes to dealing with football players and clubs. His inexperience was clearly reflected in the lacklustre performance of Manchester United in the transfer market. With the wayward tactics of under-bidding for the Everton pair to the more bold and open pursuit of Cesc Fabregas, Manchester United failed to land both Leighton Baines and Cesc Fabregas. In the end, United had to shell out £27.5 million for Fellaini, £4 million more than what they would have paid for him a few weeks before his signing.

Another criticism United have faced is their failure to land Mesut Ozil, whom they had a chance of signing before Arsenal. However, the other side of the coin portraits a different picture. Some people argue that Manchester United did not need another No. 10 player to play behind the striker. United already have Wayne Rooney for that role, not to mention the presence of Shinji Kagawa, who had been the best player in that role in Bundesliga. What the club needed was a holding midfield player, who could support the back four and also pass and keep the ball. A player who would be more like Owen Hargreaves or Paul Scholes.

Rooney Stays at United

If one were to look at the positives from the transfer period, one of the major accomplishments of David Moyes has been that of keeping Wayne Rooney at Manchester United. In a way, it is equivalent to the signing a new player of his quality, whose departure would have been a big loss to Manchester United both on the field and off it. Moyes was also able to avoid offers for Nani and more importantly Shinji Kagawa. However, the most important act was that of acquiring the services of the Belgian midfielder, Marouane Fellaini. Fellaini is just the type of player Manchester United needed to play in the heart of the field. United have of late become dependent on Michael Carrick far too much, which is evident from the fact that whenever Carrick has a bad game, so does the whole team. With the introduction of Marouane Fellaini, however, United will have the support that they needed in front of the back four and assistance for Carrick. Moreover, apart from the holding midfield position, Fellaini is also capable of playing both as a striker and behind the striker, providing Moyes with a number of options. So in a way, it seems that Manchester United have done okay for the time being and, should aim to sign another central midfielder and a left-back as cover for Patrice Evra in the January transfer window. Until then, let’s hope that Fellaini proves to be a big success at Manchester United.

Marouane Fellaini