If Manchester United’ s feeble capitulation at Newcastle United proved anything, it’s that the need for midfield reinforcements is still pressing.
Erik ten Hag didn’t need long in the Old Trafford hotseat to recognise his new side’s deficiencies in the middle of the park. Paul Pogba, Juan Mata and Nemanja Matic all departed, with replacements his top priority.
Much of his first summer window with United was dominated by public pursuits of midfield targets. Frenkie de Jong was the ‘will he, won’t he?’ story of the window, with the Barcelona star ultimately erring for the latter.
Elsewhere, there was the courting of Adrien Rabiot which saw John Murtough land in Turin, with little more than a postcard making the trip back to Manchester with him. United did land a couple of their targets though and the arrivals of Christian Eriksen and Casemiro have both helped bolster the position.
But with Eriksen ruled out with injury and Casemiro on the sidelines thanks to another suspension, the dearth of talent behind them was on full display at St James’ Park. Scott McTominay, for all of his heroics with Scotland, still divides United fans, while Marcel Sabizter has only flashed his quality since his own deadline-day move was confirmed.
Ten Hag’s second summer window is set to be another busy one, with a central midfield player still high on the agenda. How then, Manchester United, could do with a World Cup winner already proving adept in the English top flight.
Enzo Fernandez was a relative unknown 12 months ago, with his sterling reputation in South America yet to make its way fully into the European consciousness. That wasn’t to say he wasn’t turning heads of those in the know, with many believing he was on the cusp of exploding into one of the world’s best midfielders.
United’s scouts clearly agreed with that assessment and last April made their way over to Argentina to closely watch the talented 21-year-old. Ole reported that those in attendance were blown away by his talents, as he scored the only goal in a Copa Libertadores win over Fortaleza.
Unfortunately for United, with Ten Hag yet to be officially confirmed as the club’s new manager, there was a general impasse when it came to recruitment. Ralf Rangnick was in situ as interim boss back then and despite being primed for a consultancy role, top bosses were waiting for a new head coach to green light any transfer deals. That hesitancy meant United missed out, with Fernandez joining Benfica for just £17m.
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The rest is of course history, with Fernandez quickly asserting himself, first on European football with Benfica - and then on world football with Argentina. By the time he had lifted the World Cup in Qatar, his value had grown exponentially, with Chelsea splashing out a British record £107m to sign him on the same day United landed Sabitzer.
And while Chelsea have struggled since his arrival, Fernandez has shown exactly why Stamford Bridge bosses were willing to smash records to bring him to Stamford Bridge. United will have to dig deep into their pockets again this summer to solve their midfield conundrum, Fernandez could have done all of that for less than half the price of a Donny van de Beek.
