The United Devils

Image from Manchester Evening News

Even after so much negativity from fans over this summer's transfer window, we should not condemn it as a complete failure. The positives from the transfer window are the two major signings we have made being Daniel James and Aaron Wan Bissaka. Both the signings strengthen positions in which we were weaker last season (the left back and an out and out winger).

When looking at Daniel James we can see a very pacey winger with plenty of promise and potential. Even if James is nowhere near the finished article at the moment, there is much room for improvement and development which, hopefully, he can achieve at Manchester United. And, with the transfer fee being only around £15 million, you have to say that is a gamble worth taking in this current transfer market. Overall, we can say that signing of Daniel James is a positive one for the squad next season and hopefully for the future.

The next signing we've made is the acquisition of Crystal Palace full back Aaron Wan Bissaka for the fee of around £50 million. This is a really exciting move and has the potential to be one of Man United's best signings in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era. Wan Bissaka is an excellent defender. Maybe even one of the best young defenders in the whole of Europe last season. He has an amazing ability to read the game, he's fast enough to catch up with most wingers and his tackling is near perfect; hardly ever missing a tackle or committing a foul. Even from just this pre season so far we can see the impact Wan Bissaka has had on the defensive side of the team: we have not conceded a goal when he's been on the pitch so far. Overall, signing of Wan Bissaka looks extremely promising and I am confident that he will succeed at Manchester United.

However, despite these two excellent signings, this transfer window has been far from an unqualified success. This is especially exaggerated by the fact that every newspaper in the world seems to link Manchester United with a new player everyday. This constant cycle of being linked to players has become extremely tiresome for all United fans and it has also lead to much disappointment and frustration from the fans.

Another huge failure of this transfer window is the seeming drawn out transfer negotiation for several players, especially players that seem to have been linked to United since the start for summer. The apparent deals for players such as Harry Maguire and Bruno Fernandes, have been summer long sagas that seem to have no end. These transfer stories have seemingly had no advances since the beginning of the transfer window and yet there are updates everyday from several different newspapers which all happen to be saying different things. This has further added to the frustration and disappointment of fans as we feel like no progress is being made and the team isn't being improved as it should be.

Another failure of the United transfer window is a seeming lack of a coherent  recruitment plan. Every fan can see that this squad needs recruitment and more depth, yet the club seem to have no plan to bring these elements in. Many will argue that this squad still needs a striker, two midfielders and a centre back and currently we might not be getting any. This has to be seen as a huge disappointment for the fans and a catagorical failure from the United board.

This would be, in no uncertain terms, a failure of a transfer window if we are unable to add more players to our ranks. As a club, we must strive to improve year on year and not stagnate and fall behind the others in the league. The only way we can be successful in the near future is if the club actually invests in the squad and brings in the recruits that it needs.