Pochettino set for January transfer spree: New Man Utd manager gets ‘considerable’ backing
New Manchester United manager Mauricio Pochettino has been given the green light to go out and make several signings during the January transfer window.
Pochettino was officially named as Man Utd’s next manager on Friday after days of speculation linking him as Michael Carrick’s replacement at Old Trafford.
He inherits a squad that was widely considered to be thin on numbers coming into the season, and which has proven so, with deficiencies in defence and attack notably hurting the team.
United have promised that they will be busy in January for the new manager, giving Pochettino the type of backing that Carrick was not afforded in the summer.
“I think he will be backed considerably,” Sky Sports football correspondent Rob Dorsett explained.
“Man Utd try and do their business in the summer transfer windows because they've still got a number of players they want to move out. Part of the reason they didn't spend as much in the transfer window just gone was because they couldn't get a number of players out.
“They were expecting to get £36m for Marcus Rashford as part of a contract they had with Barcelona. Barcelona then decide not to go through with that and go for Anthony Gordon instead.
“The big thing for Pochettino this summer is that a lot of players are out of contract. You're talking Harry Maguire, Bruno Fernandes, Luke Shaw. All of them have an option in Manchester United's favour to extend that by a year.
“A lot of these players are on huge wages. Bruno Fernandes is the biggest earner behind Marcus Rashford. The two biggest earners, both of whom are out of contract in the summer.”
United have bought well in January before – can they do it again?
January is an unusual time for big teams to do significant business, but it is not unprecedented for the Red Devils to make mid-season signings.
Bruno Fernandes was notably signed in January 2020 in a €65 million deal with Sporting CP, while other regular first-team squad members Amad Diallo, Patrick Dorgu and Ayden Heaven are other prominent additions made during this period.
Landing the type of players that Pochettino wants in the next window, however, is likely to prove complicated. Teams are notoriously reticent to sell in January, and deals that are made are often at above-market rates. Given Ineos’ notorious desire to reduce costs, United will have their work cut out for them in getting the deals they want.
However, with Man Utd in the Premier League relegation zone, this time of crisis may spur the board into belated action.
