The January transfer window is over after three new players made the move to Manchester United.
United brought in a trio on loan – Jack Butland, Wout Weghorst and Marcel Sabitzer – to strengthen Erik ten Hag’s squad. The nature of their business shows the financial constraints the club are working against, which meant they were a lot less busy than rivals Chelsea and Arsenal in particular.
United did let some players go, but they were largely youngsters being sent out on loan to gain experience, including Charlie Savage (Forest Green Rovers), Charlie McNeill (Newport County), Shola Shoretire (Bolton Wanderers), Di'Shon Bernard (Portsmouth) and Axel Tuanzebe (Stoke City).
Ten Hag was eager to keep as many players as possible during the window as he attempts to steer United through four competitions in the coming months. As such, United were quick to push back on any interest in their first-team stars.
Mirror Football takes a look at the five players United rejected offers for – and explains why the club may well take a very different stance in the summer.
Harry Maguire
West Ham and Inter Milan enquired about taking the United captain on loan during the January transfer window. Maguire has started just four Premier League matches all season, with Ten Hag preferring Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez in central defence, but United still rejected the approaches.
The 29-year-old himself was keen to stay and fight for a first piece of United silverware, but that stance could change in the summer. If his lack of game time doesn’t change, Maguire will consider his options at the end of the season and could leave the club four years on from his £80million move from Leicester.
Victor Lindelof
Like Maguire, Lindelof is below Varane and Martinez in the pecking order, while Luke Shaw has further added to the competition in central defence. Keeping squad players happy is a tricky business, even when your side is playing in the EFL Cup, FA Cup, Europa League and Premier League.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Inter thought they could take advantage of the situation by targeting Lindelof after their Maguire approach was rebuffed. United were not interested, but Lindelof will enter the final year of his contract in July, meaning a decision might have to be made.
Scott McTominay
McTominay has taken a backwards step at United this season following the arrivals of Christian Eriksen and Casemiro to strengthen the midfield – but he has his admirers at other clubs.
Several Premier League sides were linked with a move, with Newcastle the firmest in their interest for McTominay. Internal discussions were held about a January move for the Scotland midfielder, according to The Athletic, before the Magpies backed off.
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Anthony Elanga
Elanga was one of the bright lights of the gloomy 2021/22 season under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick, but has faded from view under Ten Hag. The Sweden international is yet to score this season after slipping down the pecking order, with Antony, Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Jadon Sancho available in wide areas.
talkSPORT reported that Everton and Bournemouth enquired about his availability, while Borussia Dortmund were also interested. Unless something changes over the coming months, it would be easy to see Elanga pushing for a transfer in the summer – especially if Ten Hag brings in more reinforcements.
Facundo Pellistri
For a player that has barely featured for United, Pellistri has been very vocal about his frustrations. His agent was busy stirring the pot in January by suggesting there were “many options” for his client in Europe.
Pellistri ended up staying put and has featured three times recently. The 21-year-old winger faces a difficult challenge to break into Ten Hag’s team.
Summer exodus
Ten Hag is targeting a world-class midfielder and centre-forward in the summer transfer window. To fund such spending, United will need to sell, with £307m still owed in transfer fees and UEFA’s new Financial Stability rules looming.
Maguire’s departure could end up being mutually beneficial, while players like Donny van de Beek and Aaron Wan-Bissaka may command decent transfer fees. Dean Henderson, who is out on loan at Nottingham Forest, could be sold, while loanees Butland, Weghorst and Sabitzer will see their deals expire.
United may have stopped five players from leaving in January, but it could be a very different picture in the summer.
