Manchester United had a very disappointing, to put it mildly, summer transfer window. Manager Jose Mourinho was on an aggressive hunt to upgrade the centre back position, but none of those targets ever came over to Old Trafford. There are various reasons why United weren’t able to secure a new and better central defender, with a narrative starting to emerge of United not being the ultra-attractive destination it used to be.
It could be that some players don’t want to work under Mourinho. Or it could be that the club doesn’t have the cachet it once did.
United currently sit in seventh place in the Premier League table, and they will probably need reinforcements in the January transfer window if they are to finish in the top four.
According to Mourinho though, the upcoming winter window doesn’t look like it will see much action, if any.
“Honestly, I don’t think we are going to sign,” the Portugese said at his weekly news conference yesterday. “If we do, I would say one player. I don’t see us going more than that.”
Again United have been consistently linked with the narrative of acquiring a central defender, and again it probably won’t happen. As they are basically printing money over at Old Trafford these days, the financial resources are certainly there, but the club won’t green light the funding unless they know for sure they’ll be getting the kind of player that they really want.
Mourinho lamented the fact that his club no longer has the ability to just bludgeon other clubs with money in the transfer market. Other clubs nowadays also have the financial clout to match them/pay their players well enough to keep them from leaving.
The Red Devils boss used Tottenham Hotspur as an example, as the north London club is one that United have raided for players over the years. That seems to have changed now, especially with Tottenham Chairman Daniel Levy establishing himself as a hardball negotiator.
“Is Manchester United, by its history, by its dimension, bigger than Tottenham? With all respect, Tottenham is an amazing club but I think everybody would say yes. Can you buy Tottenham’s best players? No, because they don’t sell,” the Portugese continued.
“Of course, they are so powerful that they can say no. A few years ago, who was Tottenham’s best player? Michael Carrick. And a few years later, who was the best player? (Dimitar) Berbatov.
“Can we go there now and bring Harry Kane? Dele Alli, Eriksen, Son? Can we go there and bring those players here? No. So who is more powerful now? Them or us?
“I know that we have to do better than what we are doing, absolutely, we have to do better, but one thing is to do better and another is to compare ourselves with what Manchester United was in the past because it is impossible. Not just because Manchester United was fantastic, but because there was a big difference to the others and now it is not like that.”
Mourinho is definitely making some pre-emptive excuse making there, should United fall short of their goals for the season. Also, one of the most widely covered United transfer sagas involves Tottenham central defender Toby Alderweireld.
By referencing Tottenham specifically in order to make his point, perhaps Mourinho has inadvertently signaled to fans- don’t get your hopes up on this one.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, regularly appears as a guest pundit on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
He also contributes sociopolitical essays to Lineups.com and Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.