Evaluation of Manchester United's January transfer dealings

The January transfer window saw no new arrivals at Manchester United, prompting manager Erik ten Hag to express mild discontent. He disclosed his desires to have acquired additional strikers, but the team’s spending was curtailed by the Premier League's financial regulations.

Manchester United was not the only club to exhibit such frugality, as more than half of the division did not spend on transfers during the month. Erik ten Hag was among six managers who did not even acquire loanees.

Nonetheless, this lack of new additions does not mean that activity at the club was entirely stagnant. A glance at the deals that were concluded reveal some shifts and transactions.

A temporary move for Jadon Sancho back to Borussia Dortmund has proved beneficial for all involved. Having found himself isolated at United, Sancho now finds himself back in familiar territory. His successful Bundesliga debut was marked by an assist, aided by the difference in tactical play in Germany as compared to England, and an improved dressing room atmosphere.

The departure of Sancho also relieves Manchester United of some off-the-field issues, allowing Ten Hag to focus on addressing queries about Marcus Rashford and Antony.

A negative aspect of this move is the large portion of Sancho's salary that Manchester United continues to pay, reportedly a third of the player's £300,000 weekly wage.

Donny van de Beek managed to secure more starting spots in his first two weeks at Eintracht Frankfurt than he did during his tenue at Manchester United. However, he was dropped for a game against FC Koln, a team facing the threat of relegation.

With Manchester United successfully negotiating that Frankfurt pick up most of van de Beek's wages and a buy-out option in his loan deal. Although a potential £9.4m sale represents a loss on the £40m initially paid to Ajax, it's preferable to getting nothing, which is a possibility if van de Beek stays until 2025.

Hannibal Mejbri, who has made ten appearances for Manchester United's first team and received commendation from Ten Hag for a 'perfect' performance against Burnley, found his Premier League minutes limited. He racked up two yellow cards before starting a game with Sevilla, and even rumors of a disagreement with a teammate had to be squashed by the club's chairman.

It's doubtful Sevilla will exercise the £20m buyout clause, which might be better for Hannibal. Sevilla had only won three games from a total of 27 in La Liga and Champions League, since Hannibal joined in mid-January.

In a scenario revealing Erik ten Hag's lack of confidence in Facundo Pellistri, the Manchester United manager didn't start him even when the team's senior right wingers were unavailable for a match against Brighton. Instead, he experimented a diamond formation which gave Brighton the upper hand.

Although Pellistri's loan move to Granada will give him more game time, his position in Manchester United's pecking order remains uncertain. Pellistri returned to United after an 18-month loan spell with Alaves in La Liga but also only started one Premier League game under Ten Hag.

Alvaro Fernandez, who joined Manchester United in 2020 but has never seen action for the senior team, was loaned to Portugal's Benfica after his stint with Granada was cut short just two days after his return. If Fernandez starts more than half of Benfica's matches, he will move there permanently for £5.1m, although this seems unlikely.

Sergio Reguilon's spell at Manchester United was short but not that sweet. The Tottenham Hotspur left-back was brought in as cover for the injury-prone duo of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia but joined them in the treatment room within a month of his arrival.

Even though United didn't sign another left-back in January, Ten Hag was content to let Reguilon return to Spurs (before he was shipped out to Brentford on another loan) after just seven starts that were neither calamitous nor eye-catching.