Manchester United’s stalemate against neighbours Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon solemnly underlined the issues Ruben Amorim is dealing with.
The Portugal tactician inherited a mess and is trying his best, but he’s not going to reach the heights that INEOS will have envisaged when appointing him unless surgery is undertaken in the transfer market this summer.
However, the Red Devils are in a fragile financial state and know that they must trim the blubber from their first-team ranks if they are to make real headway in the transfer market this summer.
Man Utd need to fix their wage bill
Pep Guardiola’s Citizens are the only Premier League club to have a higher reported wage bill than Manchester United. Capology record that Old Trafford is drained some £181m per annum on first-team salaries.
Luckily, a sizeable chunk is all but confirmed to be sliced this summer. Christian Eriksen, Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans are all into the final months of their deals, which will free a combined £335k per week from the books.
The resurgent Casemiro was widely expected to be sold this summer but he’s been in fine fettle of late and may play a role in the year to come. Albeit, the 33-year-old pockets a bigger pay packet than anyone else of a Man United persuasion.
Chopping away at such players to create room for exciting incomings is the way forward. It’s a daunting task, to be sure, but one that could will Old Trafford back into shape if handled correctly.
Another top earner, Antony, is out on loan at Real Betis, in fairness, and is not expected to return to Amorim’s brood. Freeing up his financial space will be a significant step in the right direction.
The same can be said for United’s other high-earning star currently out on loan.
Man Utd must axe their high earner
Since signing for Aston Villa on loan in January, Marcus Rashford has scored three goals and provided four assists across 12 fixtures.
He has been crucial in driving Unai Emery’s side into the FA Cup semi-finals and Champions League last eight, also pushing for a top-four (or five) finish in the Premier League.
However, he was described as a “major problem” by journalist Liam Canning, with performances toward the end of his time under the wing of Amorim proving to be “nothing short of shocking.”
This divorce of positivity and withdrawal of commitment was unacceptable for a player earning a gigantic wage at £300k per week.
But in truth, Rashford’s displays for his boyhood club had petered out over a number of years, with his brilliance over the 2022/23 campaign sadly standing as an outlier now.
24/25
24
7
3
23/24
43
8
6
22/23
56
30
11
21/22
32
5
2
20/21
57
21
14
19/20
44
22
9
Villa have a buy option in their loan deal for the England international, which stands at £40m. Amorim wasn’t happy with him and deserves a clean slate to kickstart his project – of course, given that Rashford has earned north of £55m since making his professional debut, the argument for his permanent sale is only reinforced.
While Rashford has shown in the past that he can be a “goal machine” for Man United, as has been remarked by Statman Dave, there was a real sense of disconnect through the final days of his time at the club, there in the flesh.
He might be thriving at Villa Park, but for a player who has earned such vast sums as a Red Devil and ultimately lost his way, maybe cashing in and starting anew wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.
Sweeping changes, at the start of a new INEOS and Amorim era, might just end up bearing fruit.
Amorim's own Salah: Man Utd pushing to sign "Europe's best player" for £67m
Man United need to make a range of impactful signings in the transfer market this summer.
ByAngus Sinclair Apr 7, 2025