Erik ten Hag has welcomed in nine players during his reign as Manchester United manager, with five of them permanent arrivals.
The other four came in on loan deals with one already back at his parent club - Martin Dubravka may have been lining up against the Reds at Wembley if not for his appearances for the club in earlier League Cup rounds.
The United boss has a decision to make on three other loanees who will want to make their switches to Old Trafford permanent too. After a spend of £225m in the summer, the club was forced to lean into the loan market in January.
READ MORE: Agent gives update on Sabitzer's future
On paper, all three remaining loanees are stop-gap recruits amid exits and injuries of other players but this may not be the full reality. Marcel Sabitzer had been on United’s radar for a number of years and may well have been a future target anyway.
His agent has stayed coy on his client's future but admitted he is seeing the “Marcel from Leipzig again” at Old Trafford amid stagnant game time at employers Bayern Munich. The midfielder was brought in on deadline day when Ten Hag learned that Christian Eriksen’s ankle injury would keep him out until at least April.
He was anything but a “panic buy”, though, as some pundits had suggested and has fitted in well quickly with the general feeling from sections of supporters being that they want him to stay long-term. Ten Hag is a stickler for competition in his squad and Sabitzer offers that at the very least.
Meanwhile, the jury is still out on Wout Weghorst. Initially a left-field name, the striker has shown why his loan actually makes sense given the club’s empty January purse.
Attackers will always be judged on goals - Weghorst has one in 11 matches - but fans have appreciated the other assets he has brought to United. His running and hold-up play have given Ten Hag confidence to push him deeper into a number 10 role to allow Marcus Rashford and co. to bomb on and shine.
Should United decide to keep him on and buy him out of his Burnley contract - which is a possibility - Weghorst may have to settle with being a bit-part player if a marquee striker comes in and Anthony Martial stays fit for a prolonged spell.
Jack Butland would undoubtedly have to agree to be a squad player if Ten Hag decides to keep him at Old Trafford. The England international is yet to make his debut for United and might not before his deal runs out.
However, 36-year-old Tom Heaton is out of contract this summer and so a back-up to David de Gea is needed. The Spaniard is expected to sign a renewal but a long-term successor does need to be found at some stage.
The question is whether Ten Hag decides to bring in someone to compete with De Gea until he is usurped, or recruit a shot-stopper who minds the gap until a No.1 replacement is found.
The pool of decent-standard goalkeepers who would agree to the latter is small but Butland may be within it. These are all decisions Ten Hag needs to make as he continues to fine-tune his rebuild project at Old Trafford, looking at both the here-and-now, as well as the future.
READ NEXT:
