Manchester United fans have long been sick of the reporting that surrounds their club's dealings anytime there is a transfer window open, but the latest news coming from Italy suggests that there is something very wrong with the strategy that the men who call the shots at Old Trafford are using to sign new players.
In recent weeks Brazilian winger Felipe Anderson is the name that has been suggested as a january signing, but while the Lazio star was one of the most impressive players in Serie A last season, his form has undoubtedly dipped in this campaign, and now it seems that the Old Trafford club have cooled their interest.
Seems reasonable, right? He's not playing well so we'll wait and see.. That would be fair enough if they didn't attempt to buy Feliper Anderson for €50m in the final days of the summer transfer window, which is what Lazio director of sport Igli Tare has claimed:
So far we haven’t received anything from Manchester United. He is going through a negative period of form and he knows that, we talked a great deal. He has to find his calm, he is a player who is now well-known and feared. He has what it takes to emerge from this negative moment.
We turned down a €50m offer from Manchester United on August 27 and nothing has changed since then, because if he finds consistency, then he’s worth much more.
We also resisted bigger offers than that, but we have targets to achieve.
That is madness.
United were willing to spend a further €50m on Felipe Anderson, but have now been put off by his performances since the bid was rejected. The only reason the Brazilian didn't leave for Old Trafford was because Lazio weren't having it, but considering the uproar over Anthony Martial's fee, imagine the reaction if they had spent that amount and the player didn't settle?
The fact that they are now having doubts over signing the player when they were willing to spend so much money only a matter of months ago is seriously worrying for fans of the club, who have been disgruntled with their transfer activity for some time now.
The strangest thing for the supporters is the cloud of mystery around identifying transfer targets. Who makes the decisions? It doesn't seem like Louis Van Gaal is the one urging Ed Woodward to arrange deals for the like the likes of Martial and Felipe Anderson, so is it a scouting network? Or a bunch of players plucked from a list of Football Manager wonderkids list and attached to a dart board to find who the next target is?
Under Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill, it was different. Yes, the media in England are having a feast regarding United's very clear needs in terms of bolstering their squad, but when sources from the other sides involved with the deal are coming out and saying that there was interest, it suggests that it's not all 'transfer bullshit', and it makes it very difficult to see what the club are going for when it comes to new recruits.
It seems painfully obvious to many that Manchester United need a right-winger with pace, another striker, another central defender, and a full-back, yet instead the club seem obsessed with trying to arrange deals for the likes of Thomas Muller, Neymar, and Gareth Bale.
In the meantime, those who align themselves with Man Utd will just have to sit tight and reminisce about the time when Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin's transfers were announced within hours of each other, and dream of a World where that is how all business is carried out.
