Why Selling Will Be Crucial For Amorim

As he addressed the crowd after Manchester United’s final game of the season last month, Ruben Amorim promised Old Trafford that the “good days are coming”.

It seemed a curious message for the Portuguese to deliver, considering he had just apologized for a “disaster season”.

United did indeed endure a nightmare campaign, finishing 15th in the Premier League – its lowest-ever position since the league was launched in 1992 – and losing the Europa League final against Tottenham.

Overall, it was the club’s worst season since 1974, when United was relegated to what was then the Second Division.

Despite a historically poor campaign, United stood firmly behind Amorim, who replaced Erik ten Hag in November, and has wasted no time to back him in the transfer window so far.

The trading period only began on June 1, but United has already completed the signing of Matheus Cunha from Wolverhampton Wanderers after triggering his £62.5m ($83.7m) release clause.

The Brazilian, who signed a five-year deal with the option of a further year, could soon be joined by Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo.

United has tabled an opening offer of £55m ($74.6m) for the Cameroon international, who has one year left on his contract.

Between them Cunha and Mbeumo scored 35 goals and delivered 14 assists in the Premier League and would immediately upgrade Amorim’s attacking options after United scored just 44 goals in the league last term.

But while signings are crucial if Amorim is to succeed, and a striker and central midfielder are arguably still needed, selling players this summer is just as important for United.

The reasons for that are two-fold. First and foremost, failure to qualify for European competitions this season means United will only have the Premier League, FA Cup and the Carabao Cup to contend with.

That could effectively mean a 40-game season if United was to get knocked out of both domestic cups straight away.

With fewer games on the calendar, a smaller, more streamlined squad would be enough to compete on three fronts with United playing just once a week – aside from Carabao Cup commitments.

Manchester United needs a clearout

Far more importantly, United needs to sell players to finance any spending and to comply with the Premier League’s Profity and Sustainability Rules (PSR), which allow clubs to lose a maximum of £105m ($142m) over three seasons.

In March, United’s part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe told The Times and BBC Sport that the club was in danger of going bust by Christmas, had it not been for drastic cost-cutting measures.

That came after in January the club had admitted being “in danger of failing to comply with PSR/FFP [Financial Fair Play] requirements in future years”.

But in the same round of interviews, Ratcliffe also insisted the club was “not going to breach PSR”, allaying fears United may be hamstrung in the transfer window.

All the same, selling players who are surplus to requirements would allow Amorim to spend even more this summer, without falling foul of the Premier League financial rules.

Marcus Rashford, Antony, Tyrrel Malacia and Jadon Sancho will all be returning to Old Trafford after spending last season – or part of it, in the former trio’s case – on loan.

Of the quartet, Antony is likely to be the more in-demand this summer. The Brazilian scored nine goals and registered five assists in 29 games in all competitions for Real Betis after joining the LaLiga club on loan in January.

An £86m ($116m) signing from Ajax in the summer of 2022, Antony is the second-most expensive player in United’s history but never showed signs of living up to his price-tag.

The Brazilian scored eight goals in 44 games in all competitions in his first season, but his output dropped to three goals in 38 appearances the following term.

Last season, he started only three of his 14 appearances before United shipped him out on loan.

The spell at Real Betis has revived Antony’s career, with the LaLiga club hoping to sign him permanently. Bayer Leverkusen is also said to be among the suitors, with ten Hag keen to be reunited with a player he managed at Ajax and United.

While Antony’s stock has risen on loan, the situation is far more complex when it comes to Rashford, the 13th-most prolific goalscorer in United’s history with 138 goals, and Sancho.

Where next for Marcus Rashford?

The former moved to Aston Villa on a temporary transfer in January, scoring four goals and providing six assists in 17 appearances in all competitions and returning to the England squad in March.

Rashford started each of the four Champions League fixtures he played at Villa, but was in the starting XI in only four of his 10 appearances in the Premier League.

A hamstring injury brought his season to a premature end at the beginning of last month, further complicating his future.

Villa has an option to buy Rashford for £40m ($50.3m), but failure to qualify for the Champions League and its precarious financial position in terms of PSR mean they may have to sell before they buy.

The terms of the loan deal, however, do not preclude another club from buying him for the same price, should it struck a deal with both United and the player.

Rashford is under contract with United until June 2028 and earns about £365,000 ($495,000) a week, wages which could prove to be a stumbling block from most clubs outside of the Premier League.

Still only 27, the England international should in theory be at the peak of his powers.

Conversely, he hasn’t hit the double-digit mark in terms of Premier League goals in the past two seasons.

More significantly, Amorim criticized his contribution and questioned his commitment.

“Imagine a talent like Rashford, our team should be so much better with him, but he has to change,” he said in January.

“If he changes, we are more than welcome to include him, and we need it. But in this moment we have to set some standards. We are waiting for Rashford, if he wants it really bad.”

Jadon Sancho faces Manchester United exit

Sancho faces a similar predicament after his loan spell at Chelsea ended this week.

The Blues signed the 25-year-old on a temporary transfer last summer with an obligation to buy worth up to £25m ($33.7m).

However, after failing to agree terms with Sancho, Chelsea opted to pay a £5m ($6.7m) penalty charge to pull out of the deal.

Sancho was considered one of European soccer’s outstanding talents when he joined United from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2021 for £85m ($115m), a fee which remains the fourth-highest ever paid by the club.

But he never reached the same heights at Old Trafford, scoring a combined 12 goals in all competitions in two seasons despite starting 56 of his 79 appearances.

He was loaned back to Dortmund in the summer of 2023 after he publicly fell out with ten Hag, who had questioned his commitment.

Sancho joined Chelsea at the beginning of the season, scoring five goals and providing ten assists in 42 games in all competitions as the Blues secured Champions League qualification and won the Europa Conference League.

According to The Athletic, Sancho has options in England and abroad and will make a decision on his future this summer.

The winger earns north of £250,000 ($340,000) a week and his contract runs out in 12 months, with United unlikely to trigger its option to extend the deal by a further year.

United could also consider offers for Rasmus Hojlund, who has scored just 14 goals in two Premier League seasons after signing from Serie A side Atalanta in a deal worth up to £72m ($97.7m) in the summer of 2023.

The Danish striker has been an unmitigated disaster for United, albeit partly due to having to feed off scraps in a team that doesn’t create enough chances.

A return to Italy has been mooted, with Inter Milan and Juventus both interested to sign the striker on loan.

United will look very different once the season starts in August. Whether it will be enough to deliver the “good days” Amorim promised, remains to be seen.