Two hundred and fifty million pounds. Let that sink in for a second. Manchester United apparently have a quarter of a billion to spend this summer and somehow that still feels less reassuring than it should. Because we have all seen this film before. United get a war chest, United spend it on the wrong players, United finish seventh and everyone acts surprised. Lightning absolutely can strike the same place twice apparently.
The Leao news is interesting though. Reports suggest the AC Milan winger is set to turn down a Premier League move this summer, which would be a blow for any club chasing him. The lad is genuinely electric when he turns it on, proper box office stuff, and at 25 he should be entering his absolute peak years. Whether United were firmly in the race or just sniffing around is unclear but either way it looks like he is staying put. Milan fans must be delighted.
Back to that transfer budget though. Two hundred and fifty million sounds massive until you remember United need a right back, a central midfielder who actually defends, a striker who scores more than ten league goals, probably another centre back, and someone to tell Rasmus Hojlund that finishing is quite important in his position. That money evaporates fast in this market. A half decent central midfielder costs ninety million before you have even blinked.
The real question is whether Ruben Amorim gets proper control over recruitment or whether Old Trafford continues its proud tradition of the manager asking for a Fiat 500 and receiving a very expensive horse. Because the structure at United has historically been the actual problem more than the budget. Throw money at a broken system and you just get a more expensive broken system.
INEOS promised a rebuild done properly and slowly. Funny how slowly and two hundred and fifty million rarely end up in the same sentence. But if they spend it smartly, back their manager and stop panic buying in the final week of the window, there might actually be something to get excited about at Stretford End next season. Might.
Let me know your thoughts.