Ngl, this transfer window has become incredibly boring.

Actually, it's gone beyond boring. It's just depressing.

Every day it's the same story. United are linked with the same two or three players, negotiations drag on for weeks, and then one by one those players end up signing for somebody else. In our case, that somebody else has somehow become Spurs.

As things stand on 3rd July, United have effectively signed one player: Ederson, which isn't even official yet. And with the way this window has gone, I genuinely wouldn't be surprised if Tottenham hijacked that deal as well 😭.

Which is remarkable when you remember that David Ornstein [via utdreport] said United were expected to be one of the busiest clubs in the Premier League this summer.

I don't think anyone has told them the transfer window has been open for a month.

These guys 🤦‍♂️.

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The frustrating part is that this isn't a club with one or two minor issues to fix. Michael Carrick is about to begin his first full season in charge and, if we're to believe the club's own ambitions of targeting a Premier League title within the next couple of years (they've even given it a name: 'Project 150'), you'd think a transfer window this important would be treated with a little more urgency.

Apparently not.

So, instead of talking about rumours for the hundredth time, let's look at something a little more interesting.

If the Premier League season started tomorrow, this is the strongest starting XI I believe Carrick would pick with the players currently available.

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I know...

Champions League winners written all over it 😅.

Just to be clear, this is my opinion. Carrick may see things differently, but based on the squad as it stands and what we know about him as a coach, I think this is the team he'd trust.

And if you're looking at it thinking it doesn't exactly fill you with confidence...

You're not alone.

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Let's start in defense.

It was never expected to be the priority this summer. Some reports have suggested United will address that area next year [Chris Wheeler via The United Stand].

But when you actually look at the options, you could easily argue it should be a priority now.

Going into another season potentially relying on Luke Shaw, Harry Maguire and Diogo Dalot as regular starters doesn't exactly scream progress.

We desperately need another left-back. Not only someone capable of starting, but someone who can provide genuine competition and depth. With more games on the calendar next season, relying on Shaw's fitness yet again feels like a gamble we've seen fail too many times. And nor does he have the incentive of a potential World Cup to be part of.

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Dalot is an interesting one.

He ticks pretty much all of the boxes except for one; the most important of them all: being consistently good at football.

Personally, I'd rather see Noussair Mazraoui start. I think he's better than Dalot and we know he's versatile and if this World Cup has shown anything, he is probably our best left-back too.

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Then there's Maguire.

To be fair to him, I thought he had a decent season in 25/26. He deserves credit for that.

My concern is whether he'll cope as well when the fixture list becomes even more demanding and the team is expected to play a more aggressive style. Those are very different circumstances.

I fear he'll be easily found out.

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Moving further forward, the attack is the same as last season's and I don't think any one of us has a problem with that. It performed pretty well.

The interesting subplot though, is Marcus Rashford.

Call it a hunch, but I can see Carrick using him far more than people expect. In fact, I worry Carrick might share some of Ole Gunnar Solskjær's favourites.

Rashford.

Maguire.

Dalot.

Shaw.

If that proves to be the case...

Well, let's just say I'd be a little nervous.

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The biggest concern, however, is undoubtedly midfield.

Right now, Kobbie Mainoo is virtually the only guaranteed option.

Manuel Ugarte is sidelined with an ACL injury, Casemiro has gone and there simply aren't enough bodies left.

I've included Ederson because we know he is a United player even if it isn't official.

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But that's where this discussion becomes much more interesting than simply naming a team.

When you look at this XI, the problems are obvious.

The question is whether United's current recruitment strategy actually makes solving those problems easier...

Or whether it's making them even harder to fix.

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I'm sure you've seen the recent report from David Ornstein claiming that one of United's requirements when signing players is that they have to be "desperate" to join the club.

If you haven't, here's the quote.

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And this isn't some random rumour from an unreliable source. It's David Ornstein. When he reports something, there's usually substance behind it.

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Now, on the surface, I actually understand the thinking with this requirement.

After years of signing players who looked more interested in the wage package than the badge, wanting footballers who genuinely want to represent Man United isn't a bad thing. Commitment matters. Desire matters. Buying players who believe in the project should absolutely be part of the process.

But should it become one of the deciding factors?

That's where I start asking questions.

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When I look at that starting XI, I don't see a squad that can afford to be overly selective.

I see a team that desperately needs quality.

United have already watched several of their targets go elsewhere. Elliot Anderson has joined City, while both Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali have ended up at Spurs.

Now, before anyone says it, I completely understand why United walked away from some of those deals.

£116m for Anderson? £85m for Fernandes?

Those are enormous fees and, in isolation, I'd probably agree they represent overpayments. In fact, I've said exactly that before.

But the problem isn't necessarily missing out on one expensive target. The problem is missing out on all of them.

If Anderson becomes too expensive, you move to Fernandes.

If Fernandes doesn't happen, you move to Tonali.

That's how recruitment should work.

Instead, United have watched each option disappear while the biggest hole in the squad remains exactly where it was at the start of the window.

And just imagine, for a second, that United had somehow managed to bring in two of those players.

Yes, the fees would've been painful and supporters would've complained.

But would many fans really have been disappointed if Anderson and Fernandes walked into that midfield alongside Mainoo and Ederson?

I highly doubt it.

Suddenly, the weakest area of the team starts looking like one of its strongest.

That's why missing out hurts.

Midfield wasn't just another position to strengthen. It was the priority.

Replacing Casemiro should have been at the top of the list.

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And there's another point worth mentioning as well.

Neither Tonali nor Fernandes are involved at the World Cup.

That means they would've been available for a full pre-season, giving Carrick valuable time to work with them before the campaign begins.

Considering United's pre-season starts next week, that's a significant advantage.

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Which brings us back to this reported requirement that players must be "desperate" to join the club.

The more I think about it, the more I wonder whether that requirement dramatically shrinks the pool of elite players available.

Take Aurélien Tchouaméni as an example.

Would he improve United? Without question.

Would he suit what Carrick wants to build? Absolutely.

But would a Real Madrid midfielder be desperate to join United?

Probably not.

He might be open to it. He might even seriously consider it.

But desperate?

That's an entirely different conversation.

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And that's where the wording becomes so important.

If a player genuinely wants to join but isn't desperate, do United walk away?

If so, why?

We haven't won the Premier League in 13 years. They haven't consistently challenged for the biggest trophies in over a decade. We don't even qualify for the Champions League regularly.

As much as supporters hate admitting it, the world's very best players aren't queueing up outside Old Trafford begging for the opportunity to sign.

That's simply the reality.

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Even during the post-Sir Alex Ferguson years, United still convinced elite players to join.

Ángel Di María.

Alexis Sánchez.

Paul Pogba.

Zlatan Ibrahimović.

Whatever you think of how those signings turned out, none of those players arrived because they were desperate to wear the shirt.

United persuaded them.

Sometimes it was the project. Sometimes it was the manager. Sometimes it was the financial package.

Whatever the reason, the club understood that attracting elite talent often requires convincing the player that your project is worth buying into.

As United move away from offering enormous wages, which I completely agree with by the way, persuading those elite players becomes even more important.

If you're no longer paying significantly more than everyone else, and you're also insisting the player has to be desperate to join, you've just made your own job much harder.

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Then I started thinking about the people making these decisions.

Were they desperate to join Man United?

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Let's start with the Glazers.

To be fair, they probably were desperate...

Mainly because they saw one of the biggest commercial opportunities in world football.

Jokes aside, they're here because the club makes money.

Despite putting United up for sale a couple of years ago, I've never really believed they wanted to walk away completely.

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Then there's Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

Before buying his stake in United, he openly attempted to buy Chelsea [Sky Sports].

CEO Omar Berrada spent years at City. Sporting Director Jason Wilcox also came through City's football structure.

I'm not questioning their commitment.

But were any of them desperate to join United?

Probably not.

So why has that suddenly become one of the key requirements for a player?

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Historically, ambitious football clubs haven't sat back waiting for players to come knocking.

They've identified the footballers they believe can transform the team and then done everything possible to convince them to join.

That could be paying more, selling the vision or reying on the manager.

Speaking of the manager, I think that's another challenge United currently face.

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Despite my reservations, I really hope Michael Carrick succeeds.

But manager pull is a real thing.

Carlo Ancelotti has it. Pep Guardiola has it. Mikel Arteta has developed it. Even Roberto De Zerbi has it.

Mateus Fernandes admitted exactly that after joining Tottenham.

"I'm very excited for this next step. Spurs is a massive club and De Zerbi was a key part of why I decided to join. When we spoke, it was very special. We look at football in the same way."

That tells you everything.

Managers sell projects.

Carrick may well become that figure one day but right now, though, he's still building his own reputation which makes attracting elite players even more difficult.

All of this brings me back to Ederson.

I like the signing and I he'll improve the squad.

But he's also exactly the profile these reported recruitment criteria seem designed to produce.

• Good value
• Within budget
• Bought into the project
• Happy to join

Again, I mean no disrespect to him but if United genuinely want to win the Premier League within the next couple of seasons, are signings like Ederson enough to exactly that?

Or do you eventually need to persuade players from Europe's elite clubs to choose United over everyone else?

If the answer is yes then "desperate" starts sounding less like a useful recruitment principle and more like a restriction.

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At the risk of repeating myself, United have made no secret of their ambitions.

They've spoken about winning the Premier League multiple times in the next two seasons. It's an ambitious target, and one every supporter would love to see become reality.

But the more I think about these reported recruitment requirements, the more I wonder whether they've created a different problem entirely.

Not necessarily on the pitch, but in the conversation around the club.

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Every time United are linked with an expensive player, the debate follows exactly the same pattern.

One group argues that the player is worth whatever it takes because the squad desperately needs quality.

The other argues the fee is ridiculous and that United shouldn't be held to ransom.

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Then comes the next argument.

Is the player desperate enough to join?

Does he really want United?

Should the club move on if he isn't completely sold on the project?

Before long, the entire discussion revolves around whether United should sign that specific player.

Meanwhile, the club could already be working on completely different deals.

Whether that's intentional or not, I don't know.

But the effect is the same.

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Supporters spend weeks arguing over footballers who may never have been realistic targets in the first place, while the players who actually fit the club's recruitment profile quietly move through the process in the background.

Carlos Baleba is the perfect example.

We've heard his name before.

He fits the age profile, he'd improve the midfield, he isn't one of the biggest names in European football.

And, based on everything we've heard, he seems like someone who would fully buy into the project.

He would be desperate to join.

If these reports are accurate, he feels far more like the type of player United would actually pursue than someone like Tchouaméni.

And if that's the strategy, fair enough.

Every club should have an identity when it comes to recruitment and every club should know exactly what profile of player they're looking for.

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But there's a difference between having guidelines and creating limitations.

The perfect signing rarely exists.

Sometimes you'll have to pay more than you planned.

Sometimes you'll have to convince a player rather than have him begging to join.

And sometimes you'll have to compete with Europe's biggest clubs for footballers who have several elite options in front of them.

That doesn't automatically make them the wrong signing.

If anything, it's usually the opposite.

The very best players almost never have just one choice.

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When I look back at that predicted starting XI, that's the thought I can't get out of my head.

This isn't a squad that's one player away. It's a squad with several obvious holes.

The midfield needs strengthening.

The defence still has question marks.

Depth is lacking in key areas.

Those aren't opinions.

They're realities that become obvious the moment you try to put together the strongest team available today.

And that's why I keep coming back to the same question.

Is Manchester United making an already difficult job even harder?

Wanting players who believe in the badge is admirable. Wanting good value in the market is sensible. Wanting footballers who suit the manager's system is essential.

But if those requirements become so strict that they significantly reduce the number of players you're willing to sign, then they stop helping your recruitment.

They start restricting it.

And why would players be desperate to join a club who's had multiple projects in recent years or for a project with a new and inexperienced manager?

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Maybe the club prove all of us wrong in the end.

Maybe Ederson arrives, another couple of quality signings follow, Carrick gets exactly what he needs and this article looks ridiculous by September.

I'd happily take that outcome.

But ultimately, none of us care about winning transfer windows.

We care about winning football matches.

Right now, though, when I look at United's strongest possible XI I don't see a team ready to challenge for the Premier League.

And if the club's own recruitment strategy is making those weaknesses even harder to fix, then they've trapped themselves before a ball has even been kicked.