Manchester United’s summer transfer window is right on track

Manchester United entered the summer transfer window with the “aim” of making “two quick signings” before the club’s pre-season tour of American began for under £100 million.

That is according to Ben Jacobs, a correspondent for Give Me Sport and TalkSPORT, who reveals the recent deals agreed for Joshua Zirkzee (Bologna) and Leny Yoro (Lille) were part of a well-established plan by United.

Jacobs writes on X, “Manchester United’s aim was to make two quick signings before their US tour for under £100m. Joshua Zirkzee (€42.5m) has joined and Leny Yoro (€62m) is undergoing his medical.”

The combined total fees for the two players amounts to just under £95 million and, if things go according to plan, both will be available to play in the club’s first pre-season game in America against Arsenal.

It is a rare feeling for a United fan to see their club enter a transfer window with a clear and concise plan in place. It is even rarer for the club to then go and execute said plan perfectly, under budget and within a quick timeframe.

Has anyone checked outside for a flying pig in the last few hours?

United’s budget was always going to be a constrained one this summer, owing to the acute pressure of the Premier League’s profits and sustainability rules (PSR). It appears the club had sufficient funds to sanction two big-money moves before the need for departures to fund additional moves.

Jacobs reveals the “budget now depends on outgoings” with Old Trafford officials still seeking to target “another centre-back and central midfielder.”

Concurrent to the negotiations to secure Yoro, United were locked in talks for Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton) and Matthijs de Ligt (Bayern Munich). There were reports suggesting the club could target as many as three new centre-backs this summer, but two feels more likely.

A deal for Branthwaite appears impossible now Everton have improved their own PSR position, thanks to the July 1 deadline and the sale of Amadou Onana to Aston Villa for £50 million. Their valuation of their 21-year-old defender – as high as £75 million – is considered wholly unrealistic by United executives.

The pursuit of De Ligt, therefore, feels a much more credible option. The Dutch international is open to a move to Old Trafford and a chance to reunite with Erik ten Hag, while Bayern are keen for his departure to help generate funds for their own budget.

Similarly, there is considerable noise surrounding the transfer of PSG’s Manuel Ugarte – the Uruguayan midfielder who delivered an impressive showing at Copa America this summer. Whether United are able to secure the signings of Ugarte or De Ligt will depend on outbound transfers, however.

The sales of Willy Kambwala to Villarreal (£9.6 million), Alvaro Fernandez to Benfica (£5.1 million) and, most recently, Mason Greenwood to Marseille (worth a potential £27 million) are important deals on this front. Each player is an academy graduate and, therefore, their sales are counted as pure profit from a PSR perspective.

If United are able to buttress their budget with a few more departures, in addition to the income generated from these academy sales, it should open up enough flexibility to continue pursuits of players like De Lift and Ugarte. Just, it seems, as INEOS had always intended.

Did anyone spot that pig?

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