The international break comes at the right time for Manchester United supporters. The start to the Premier League season has been absolutely atrocious, and the summer transfer window, which just closed yesterday, was a total disaster. (Read our analysis, and see our grade here)
United was anything but a big club this summer as they finished 10th in total spending in the Premier League (54.4m GBP) on transfer fees. Their overall net spend was also 10th, accumulating a total of 36.4m. That is beyond unacceptable at United!
Alas, let’s try to move on to some of the news items circulating right now as he have lots of time off until United plays again, Oct 17 at Newcastle.
You can say this for the side, they have great overall team fitness right now. Or maybe that’s an insult? after all if they were this bad fully fit, then what would they be short-handed? Axel Tuanzebe is one of very few injury concerns in the side, but he’s resumed full training now, and he’ll challenge for a starting spot, according to The Telegraph.
Tuanzebe has not played since last December due to a foot injury, and it won’t be too hard to look better than the other central defenders have looked thus far.
Another good piece in the Telegraph, via Yahoo news, breaks down the failure of United’s transfer window, and why Ed Woodward and Matt Judge are both in over their depths.
As the column points out, barely escaping at Brighton, getting totally out-classed by Crystal Palace and utterly demolished through and through by Tottenham just cannot happen given all the extremely high priced talent in the club.
Of course, you cannot possibly expect a team featuring the world’s most expensive defender, most well-paid goalkeeper, the Premier League’s record incoming, over £100m of attacking firepower from Bruno Fernandes and Anthony Martial – without even counting all their other assets – to get more than a very fortunate three points from those opening fixtures and concede less than 11.
Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer deserves blame, and gets it too. For good news, we have to actually look at the women’s team now.
Or at least this might really say something about the men’s team…Christen Press and Tobin Heath, their two big summer signings from America, outsold any male player in shirt sales, for the first three days after joining the club.
Here is more on that via ESPN FC.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, 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,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.