One assessment of José Mourinho’s business at the halfway mark of the window might be that it has been underwhelming. The manager has recruited Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk for £52m, paid Porto £19m for Diogo Dalot and signed Lee Grant for £1.5m from Stoke City to become his third-choice goalkeeper. Whether theses recruits have strengthened the squad is arguable. At Russia 2018 Fred could not dislodge Casemiro or Manchester City’s Fernandinho as Brazil’s defensive midfielder, the 25-year-old failing to feature for a single second.
For United Fred’s role is to be the pivot who allows Paul Pogba to surge forward. That pair join Nemanja Matic, Ander Herrera, Scott McTominay and Marouane Fellaini as Mourinho’s midfield options. Yet there is a lack of stardust here, apart from Pogba, and no natural replacement for the Frenchman if he is absent. This is in contrast to City, where Pep Guardiola can choose from David Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gündogan.
Full-back is one of the key positions Mourinho believes has to be improved if United are to catch their crosstown rivals. Yet Dalot is a largely untested 19-year-old and Antonio Valencia and Ashley Young are converted wingers who will both be 33 when the season starts. Luke Shaw appears to have lost considerable weight via a close-season fitness regime but remains an enigma, while Matteo Darmian may leave along with Daley Blind, who completed his move to Ajax on Tuesday. Mourinho, then, may need to buy again, with Juventus’s Alex Sandro a possible target.