Man Utd could have title-challenging XI now if Solskjaer signed top targets

Football Digest: Analysing Man Utd's failed recruitment

Manchester United have spent nearly £400million since Erik ten Hag took charge 16 months ago but, if things had turned out differently under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the club might not have needed to spend so extravagantly. The Premier League side have undergone another significant transformation under the Dutchman and United fans are seemingly content with the players he has brought in, but Solskjaer may feel frustrated that he was not afforded the same luxuries in getting the targets he wanted.

The Norwegian enjoyed three years at the helm before departing in November 2021, having failed to win a trophy after reaching three cup semi-finals and losing the Europa League final on penalties to Villarreal.

However, United did finish second in the league under his management and showed their power in the transfer market by recruiting Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho, Raphael Varane and Harry Maguire.

It should be mentioned, however, that he missed out on several targets due to financial constraints – some players whom have since gone on to become world-class operators – giving United fans a sense of ‘what if?’. And in hindsight, it may cause bring up some regret amongst the United hierarchy at how they spent the £500m under Solskjaer, when they could have invested it elsewhere in players with high potential.

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The biggest miss by some margin is the man who joined their infamous ‘noisy neighbours’ Manchester City: Erling Haaland. In January 2020, it looked as if they could have nabbed the Norwegian talisman for just £17m from Red Bull Salzburg as Solskjaer had the inside track, given that he had already coached him at Molde.

But United had reservations over the £51m release clause his father, Alf-Inge, wanted inserted into his contract and pulled out of the deal. Borussia Dortmund jumped to the front of the queue and got the deal over the line – and 85 goals in 89 appearances later, it proved to be United’s huge error in judgment as Haaland then clinched a move to City.

The rest is history. In his debut season, Haaland broke the record for most goals in a Premier League season and helped City become the first English club to win a Treble in 24 years. United, meanwhile, finished the season with Wout Weghorst and Anthony Martial as their strikers.

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But the list goes beyond Haaland. In that same transfer window, United made a big effort to lure Jude Bellingham to Old Trafford as Europe’s elite circled around the Birmingham City trainee. At one stage, it looked as if the Red Devils had gained the upper hand after Sir Alex Ferguson showed him around Carrington, but Dortmund agreed a £25m fee with Birmingham and snapped up the midfielder.

Three years later, Bellingham is an England regular and one of the most talented midfielders of his generation, having earned a £105m switch to Real Madrid. United could have landed him for a fraction of that fee, and spent £70m on a 30-year-old Casemiro instead under Ten Hag.

It was a similar case with Declan Rice too, with the former West Ham captain a long-time target for United.

The Englishman was available for around £70m when he became a West Ham regular but senior officials felt it was steep for a relatively unproven player, despite Solskjaer reportedly pressuring the Glazers to agree a deal. Now Rice partners Bellingham in the England midfield and is proving to be a masterful signing for Arsenal, having scored in the 3-1 win over United last Sunday.

Many more could be added to the list. Nathan Ake was a target before he joined City, as was Jack Grealish when Aston Villa were ready to cash in on the winger for £60m – he later signed for their rivals in a British record £100m deal.

Whether or not those same players would have the identical trajectory remains to be seen, but United were denied an outstanding starting XI only due to their own decisions, leaving Solskjaer and co to imagine what could have been.

Solskjaer’s Man Utd XI imagined: Oblak; Trippier, Varane, Maguire, Shaw; Bellingham, Rice, Pogba; Grealish, Haaland, Sancho.

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