After signing Aaron Wan-Bissaka in 2019, Manchester United’s PR machine boasted they had scouted 804 right-backs before landing on the Crystal Palace player. At the time it felt like an unnecessary brag, designed to convince fans and journalists the club were doing their due diligence when it came to scouting and data.
Now, as the search for a left-back to challenge Luke Shaw drags on with less than two weeks of the summer transfer window remaining, there seems to be a lack of credible targets.
As they did with Wan-Bissaka seven years ago, United’s analysts this summer plumped for a prodigious English full-back playing for one of the Premier League middleweights. That player, Lewis Hall, ticks many boxes for the club except for the price, with Newcastle understandably slapping a premium on the 21-year-old having already lost Anthony Gordon, Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimarães. United have indicated a reluctance to pay over the odds for players and hence negotiations for Hall have hit the rocks, with Newcastle valuing him at about £70m.
However, United’s need for a left-back reinforcement to help out Shaw, and probably displace him longer term, is clear. The 31-year-old started every Premier League game last season and performed solidly, but his history with injuries is such that another ever-present campaign is highly unlikely, especially as United will have far more than the 40 games they played last season – the minimum amount possible and the fewest since 1914-15.
With the return of Champions League football, United should play upwards of 50 games. With Casemiro gone and Manuel Ugarte unavailable for the rest of 2026 with a knee ligament injury, United would appear to have found the final piece of their midfield puzzle as they pursue Brighton’s Carlos Baleba. Up front, Marcus Rashford is back after loans at Aston Villa and Barcelona and, if he stays, will offer pace and variety to boost the attack.
That leaves one major area of concern, heightened by the fact Shaw struggled in a 4-2 pre-season defeat to Ruben Amorim’s Milan on Saturday. Although Jorge Salinas of Racing Santander and Club Brugge’s Joaquin Seys have been linked with the club, both are green and would appear unready to usurp Shaw. Patrick Dorgu is viewed as more of a winger by Michael Carrick while Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui are clunky fits on the left side of defence. Youngster Harry Amass is likely to be sold or loaned out.
United will be fairly happy with their midfield business if and when they get the Baleba deal done. Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans have impressed in pre-season after United chose not to go after Elliot Anderson, signed by Manchester City for £116m, nor Tonali or Mateus Fernandes, who joined Tottenham for a combined £185m. A third new midfielder was always needed to reduce the burden on Santos, Tielemans and Kobbie Mainoo over a long season.
“We’ve done really good business,” Carrick said last week, before news of the Baleba transfer was mooted. “We’re delighted with that [but] we want more, we need more. We keep looking for how we can do that, so that never stops.
“Over time we need to be pushing to enhance the squad, 100% we need to do that.”
But if Carrick is to push for one final marquee signing, can United afford not to fully back their manager when there is a hole in the squad? Can they find value in the market as they did with Santos and Tielemans? The hope is a left-back transfer comes out of nowhere, as the deals for the three midfielders have done.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has gained a reputation for penny-pinching since acquiring a minority stake in the club that came with control of football operations. His drive to save money at Old Trafford has been controversial, with staff made redundant and bizarre stories emerging about the ways he and Ineos have tried to cut costs.
That said, last summer United shelled out more than £200m on a new frontline, with Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko arriving and impressing in their debut seasons. They also found a gem of a goalkeeper in Senne Lammens from the Belgian Pro League. And their financial outlay paid dividends, albeit after the sacking of Amorim, as Carrick guided United to third place.
Many believe refusing to spend more would equate to hanging a bright young manager out to dry. Having won 12 of his 17 matches in charge and being handed the reins on a permanent basis, most agree Carrick has earned the right to lead United for a full campaign.
The Baleba deal would be a step in the right direction, but failing to sign another left-back could be a costly transfer mistake from the Old Trafford hierarchy.
