Manchester United will take a targeted approach during the summer transfer period to give Ruben Amorim an idea of what his best team will look like this season
Reuben Amorim was given a full season for the first time with his Manchester United team. He wants it to do business. The Portuguese has a team playing in his favorite three backing system, and has already added the likes of Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo to the roster.
Benjamin Sesco is next in line, with the Slovenians choosing United for rival Newcastle. Regulations on profit and sustainability may limit what else can be done, but some well-known exits can still free up funds.
Marcus Rashford’s wages are off the book after the loans moved to Barcelona, but Jadon Sancho is expected to join Juventus when the Turin club can shift several players themselves. Harry Maguire is in place, but Antony, Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hoilund may be available at a reasonable price.
Apart from the new frontlines, United looked into midfield reinforcements in the form of Carlos Valleva. The Brighton star has managed to put them back down a cool £100 million, but this summer could be a tall order.
However, if United completes both deals, Amorim faces the task of solving how to put all the talented players on the pitch at once. Here, Miller Football sees how he manages it.
read more: Win Premier League tickets for Chelsea v Crystal Palace or Man City v Tottenhamread more: Transfer News Live: Man Utd is £74 million Sesko Deal, Liverpool Star Set exit, Arsenal’s latest
Goalkeeper and defense
Despite the low finishes in the previous period, United actually admitted fewer goals than top half finishers Brentford and Brighton, with only Aston Villa in sixth place. For this reason, Amorim may have opposed large-scale surgery in the posterior region.
Andre Onana remains United’s first-choice keeper for now despite the highly-prominent errors from last year. He should be helped by the return of Lisandro Martinez after a long-term injury, and Argentina will be badly overlooked towards the end of last season’s tail, but there’s still not much time for him to be ready for the Premier League.
Martinez is the first choice on the left side of back 3, with Renee Yoro on the right and Matigis de Liguto between them. Harry Maguire is also a central option, with the former captain hoping to extend his contract, while the versatile Noucea Mazrawi can expect to get minutes at the centre-back or wingback depending on the opposition.
Middle
For simplicity, I’ve included the role of backs on these wings as part of the midfield here. Here, things like Mazraoui and Diogo Dalot remain options, but United’s best Xi may be broader with more offensive oriented Amad and Patrick Dorgu.
In the middle, the field’s further signatures are expected to push most Captain Bruno Fernandez into a deeper role. Baleba will be his natural partner if he can make a deal and offers the option to win the ball alongside the Portuguese star.
But if Baleba stays in Brighton, Manuel Ugarte and Casemiro fight it for other places. Toby Collyer and Kobbie Mainoo will also play a role, but there was a final term that made Amorim seemingly wanting to take Mainoo further.
attack
United scored just 44 league goals last season. Cunha, Mbeumo and Sesko scored 48 among them, but we believe our rudimentary mathematics is above 44.
The addition of the £74 million man Sesco could help ease the pressure on Hozilund of £72 million. However, without European football sharing workloads, you may be questioning the minutes given to Dane.
Joshua Zirkzee offers a solid rotation option and showed him useful last season when he is not asked to set up the kind of target number he has never put up with his career. It also has the opening game against Arsenal if Fernandez plays behind the striker and Amorim doesn’t want to throw all three new boys at once.
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