Regardless of the outcome of Saturday's FA Cup final at Wembley, attention will immediately switch to the summer transfer window for Manchester United.
The window is scheduled to officially open for business on June 14, meaning United will be let loose off the leash to start putting together their squad for the second chapter of the Erik ten Hag era. Whether the Reds beat Manchester City under the arch this weekend or not, this campaign has been one of progression and promise for the red half of Manchester.
The club has finished third in the Premier League table, resulting in Champions League qualification for next season being secured, and has won the Carabao Cup. As debut seasons go, Ten Hag can be very pleased with the progress that has been made so far.
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But despite the headway United have made, Ten Hag will not allow the club to stand still; he will now expect progress to be made year-on-year. The ultimate ambition for the Reds, of course, is to become genuine Premier League title challengers again and compete with Europe's heavyweights in the Champions League.
To stand any chance of achieving those two aforementioned ambitions, United, as has been well-documented in recent months, must strengthen their armoury ahead of the start of next season. Ten Hag has identified the areas that he wants to strengthen during the off-season and the challenge of sourcing a world-class striker is set to be United's leading priority.
Despite Marcus Rashford becoming the first United player in a decade to score 30 goals in a single season, scoring goals has been a major concern for the club this term. They have been unable to call upon a reliable centre-forward and it is essential that they solve that particular conundrum this summer.
Tottenham Hotspur ace Harry Kane, as reported by the Manchester Evening News back in March, is Ten Hag's top target to strengthen his attacking options, though United are working under the assumption that the Londoners will refuse to sell the England captain, despite him heading into the final year of his contract at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Other strikers are being kept in mind and United know they will have to turn to one of them if Spurs refuse to play ball.
But whether it be Kane or another of their main targets that United manage to get through the door, signing one striker this summer may not necessarily be enough. Anthony Martial's fitness issues this season have proven that it is practically impossible to operate with just one recognised striker, and even Wout Weghorst's January arrival on loan from Burnley has done little to ease that problem because of his lack of quality in front of goal.
In an ideal world, United should attempt to sign two strikers this summer, with one being a statement signing to spearhead their forward line and the other a suitable back-up option to provide healthy competition. Having two recognised strikers within the squad would give Ten Hag the option to rotate, as well as offer him the peace of mind that he would have another option to fall back on if his main goal-getter got injured or picked up a suspension.
Given other positions within the squad also need strengthening this summer, Ten Hag's summer budget will dictate what he can and cannot do, of course. Signing a world-class striker is a leading priority and it will be unforgivable if United exit the window at the beginning of September without having sourced a new No.9.
But if they do manage to bring in a statement striker and a lesser name to provide support and competition, that would ease the pressure on their primary signing, as well as offer a rotational option. At City, for example, Erling Haaland is their main man, but Pep Guardiola knows he can rely on Julian Alvarez to step in if the former suffers an injury or is unavailable for whatever reason.
If Martial is sold, as is possible, United will need to recruit two strikers. If he stays and somehow manages to maintain his fitness, the world-class striker they need might be enough, with the Frenchman providing competition and cover from the bench.
But considering he has been unreliable for most of this season, United may have to cash-in, accept a huge financial loss on him and start afresh. Signing a world-class goal-getter, whoever it proves to be, will ease the goalscoring burden on Rashford, but it might not be enough.
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