This summer, Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville went back on his previous claims as he urged the Manchester United board to get moving in the transfer market.
Neville has been critical of United's transfer strategy in the past, and even club CEO Richard Arnold revealed to fans that they have "burned through cash" in recent years. United have got themselves into a tough spot by throwing large sums of money at players who aren't cut out for the job in hand.
In 2020, Neville felt as though United were moving in the right direction, and even praised them for being more decisive over their transfers as he claimed they had stopped playing "Football Manager". But after a slow start to the current summer transfer window, Neville's had a change of heart and urged United to get things moving.
There is a sense of unrest around United, with only Tyrell Malacia being brought in so far under new boss Erik ten Hag. Elsewhere, Manchester City and Liverpool are said to have completed their summer business, while Arsenal and Tottenham have enjoyed prolific windows.
Once again, it seems like United are trailing behind their Premier League rivals, and Neville has urged his former side to wake up. On Twitter, he posted back in June: "I know early in the window but it’s worrying that United are struggling to get business done.
"The others seem set and ready yet United can’t get moving. ETH needs his group together asap to mould them. Bringing them in late will only make it harder for him! Fingers crossed it happens soon!"
But since that tweet, only Malacia has been brought in while deals have stalled elsewhere. So it would only be right to assume that Neville is now even more desperate for signings to be made.
However, after the brilliant signing of Bruno Fernandes back in 2020, Neville praised United for not rushing to sign players in a panic. Despite applying the pressure during this window, he backed United for ignoring calls to jump at signings two years ago.
"If you think about recruitment at Man Utd, it's actually about the players that maybe they haven't signed," Neville said. "What they seemed to be doing at one point is getting linked with a player and they'd jump in and panic, whereas now they seem to be a bit more thoughtful.
"A few years ago it was like they were playing [video game] Football Manager. Falcao's available, [Angel] Di Maria's available, [Bastian] Schweinsteiger's available. Whereas now I think they realise that strategy was not working at all."
Malacia has been brought in, and a free deal for Christian Eriksen is close. But the main saga of the summer remains with Frenkie de Jong, while United are in danger of buckling and meeting Ajax's excessive price tag for Lisandro Martinez and Antony.
With 12 first team stars already departing this summer, and Cristiano Ronaldo looking to leave, United certainly need reinforcements for next season. But time is running out as Neville stated, meaning a sense of luck may be needed to avoid more transfer regrets.
