All the hype that entered this summer transfer window at Manchester United has essentially fizzled. MUFC have been linked with approximately 45,329 players this silly season, but only one, Daniel James, has actually been signed.
Hopefully, there will be more signings to talk about between now and when camp opens up on July 1, but until then, here are some of the top trending news items and transfer narratives in the Manchester United online community on this Saturday. (Go here for today’s first edition of Manchester United news and transfer talk)
Is Alexis Sanchez headed for a resurgence of form at Manchester United this season? Well, he seems to be finding his groove back on the international level this summer at the Copa America.
Alexis ended his five month scoring drought on Monday night, when he found the back of the net versus Japan. He also scored the game winner last night versus Ecuador, revealing that he overcame an ankle injury to help lead the Copa title holders into the quarterfinals of the competition.
“After a cross I rolled my ankle but I put a bandage on it, I took a pill for the pain and I came out again,” he said to the assembled media.
“I think I have a sprain, I was playing with pain but I hope it’s not too serious.”
Chile national team manager Reinaldo Rueda said that the ankle Sanchez injured is different from the one that he hurt in May.
“He was evaluated by the doctors at halftime who said he could continue, although he put lots of ice on it at halftime. He made a huge effort in the second half,” Rueda said.
“We’ll evaluate it again but we hope it isn’t serious.”
Moving on, we return to the huge embarrassing failure that has been the search for a centre back upgrade. Mats Hummels left Bayern Munich to make a return to his former club, Borussia Dortmund last week.
Today, it was reported that in doing so he turned down an offer from United that was worth more money than the BVB deal. It’s just a rumor, but Bild is a trusted source and they claim Hummels made the call based on his desire to play Champions League football.
What we know for sure is what one specific BVB club legend, Patrick Owomoyela, thinks of the Hummels move and Dortmund’s transfer window thus far, as we had an exclusive with him.
“I’m really pleased with what they did so far,” Owomoyela said ahead of the Borussia Dortmund-Liverpool FC friendly at Notre Dame next month.
“Bringing in Thorgan Hazard as an addition for our offense. Bringing in Julian Brandt from Leverkusen as an addition for our offense was really important, it’s always good to have these guys playing for us, because they are the future.”
“They brought in Niko Schulz and last, but not least Mats Hummels for our defensive end, which to me was really more important because offensively we weren’t really struggling last season. We had more problems with injuries and the defensive department.”
“So these additions could really help us out to gain more points and do an even better job than we did this year.”
Finally, is this Aaron Wan-Bissaka thing ever going to happen?
It’s really getting tedious now, but the Daily Express says closure could be in sight, with both parties agreeing on a £42 million fee. Well, we’ll believe it what it’s officially official.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, also contributes to Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.