The January transfer window is on the horizon and some big decisions need to be made at Manchester United.
The January transfer window may be a notoriously difficult month for clubs to do business, but for Manchester United and other top teams it can present an opportunity. Players who are out of contract in the summer can speak to overseas clubs as early as January.
If you are club like United where there are a number of players out of contract at the end of the campaign, you need to decide what the plan is for them before January rolls around. If you don’t, you risk losing players who you may wish to keep. With this in mind, MEN Sport has taken a look at five players United must make decisions on before the January window opens.
Tom Heaton
Starting with the least urgent decision, Heaton has been a good servant for the club since moving back to Old Trafford. Some often underestimate the importance of the third-choice goalkeeper but Heaton has been part of the leadership team at United this season and he is clearly respected at the club.
His future will depend on whether the former Burnley man wishes to retire at the end of the campaign. If he doesn’t, the Reds will need to make a choice. But either way, they will want to know what is happening at the end of the season before January arrives.
Tyrell Malacia
This one feels like an open and shut case. Malacia requested to leave United in the summer transfer window but he was the one member of the ‘bomb squad’ to miss out on an exit.
Ruben Amorim has reintegrated him into first-team training and he has made one appearance on the bench this season. His time at the club is coming to an end and United would more than likely welcome him signing a pre-contract agreement elsewhere in January.
Jadon Sancho
Certainly a trickier decision than Malacia. Not because there is a route back into the United fold for the winger but due to whether or not the club decides to take a risk and activate the 12-month extension in his deal.
If they do that, the Reds will have two chances to gain some money back for the forward. However, they are only pushing the issue further down the line and activating an extra 12 months against his will doesn’t seem like the right move for United to make.
Sancho’s time to earn a permanent exit for a fee has passed him by and United need to put this sorry saga to bed. His performances at Aston Villa have done little to suggest any club would want to pay a fee for him.
Harry Maguire
Maguire has managed to turn around his career at Old Trafford and will now be remembered somewhat fondly for how he has bounced back. United would like to keep Maguire and you can tell he is a good person to have in the dressing room. The contract needs to be right though.
Casemiro
Arguably the trickiest decision on this list. Casemiro has been superb this season for United, he is their second top goalscorer and is enjoying a renaissance at Old Trafford. United hold an option to extend his contract by a further year but the Reds would like to negotiate him down from that lofty salary.
There seems to be a severe lack of affordable and quality defensive midfielders at present and United will know that. But if Casemiro is unwilling to agree to a lower salary, the Reds will have no choice but to move on, but that decision needs to be made soon.
