Manchester United appear to have taken onboard the advice of former player Rio Ferdinand in ‘humbling themselves’ when eying up their transfer targets for the summer.
The Red Devils will be kickstarting a significant project at the end of the season when a fresh face arrives in the dugout at Old Trafford hoping to help the club become the European force that they once were.
There is already a sprinkling of top-quality talent in the United squad, but new players, a new mentality and a new tactics will be needed in the dressing room when Ralf Rangnick’s successor arrives at the club.
Speaking on his Vibe with Five YouTube channel, club legend Ferdinand brutally spoke of how United need to be prepared for an extended period of transition where success is not guaranteed, he said: “I think personally United have got to write off the next year or two in terms of trophies, minimum.
“Say ‘we're going to rebuild what we have, get our recruitment right and there is a certain style of play under this new manager that we are going to go with and he is going to have time to get it all right, there is going to be mistakes, a few things that go wrong but we are going to stick with this guy and give him a minimum of two years to work it out’ and see the progress and that development happen.”
And already it appears that the club have listened to the advice of their former captain as their interest in fullback Tino Livramento indicates that they are focusing on the long-term rather than the short term.
The fullback has impressed since joining Southampton from Chelsea in the summer and he has caught the attention of United, according to Calcio Mercato.
The English right-back has thrived under Ralph Hasenhuttl, making best use of his pace in the final third but also being strong defensively when the Saints are out of possession.
If United are to attract Livramento to the Theatre of Dreams and secure themselves a solid young prospect in defence for the foreseeable future then they will have to act quickly as Chelsea have a buyback clause of £50million that will become active in 2023, says The Athletic.
Of course, United won’t make the move for the 19-year-old unless it is greenlighted by their new manager, but it is unlikely that anyone would be turning down the opportunity to sign the exciting young prospect given how well he has played in his debut Premier League campaign.
Investing in youth rather than proven talents is a sign that the higher powers at the club have come to the realisation that they don’t have a unified squad capable of winning silverware in the immediate future.
Ferdinand concluded: “Sometimes you've got to humble yourself and take stock and say in reality, that is where we are at.”
It remains to be seen whether United continue to try and add young talent to their squad going forward, or if they are tempted into tasking their new manager with the demand of winning trophies immediately.
