Manchester United will have a busy summer of transfer activity, according to Gary Neville, who feels his old club needs make at least four additions to be more competitive than previous season.
United had a dismal season that cost Ole Gunnar Solskajer his job in November, and temporary replacement Ralf Rangnick had an even worse season as the Red Devils finished with their lowest Premier League points total ever.
Rangnick’s consulting role has been eliminated as incoming manager Erik ten Hag aims to start fresh with the new management.
The departures of 11 first-team and peripheral players, including Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic, Jesse Lingard, and Juan Mata, were announced on Friday.
Many of the players Ten Hag inherited from his predecessors have been questioned, and the Dutchman has already highlighted Frenkie de Jong, whom he coached at Ajax, as a major target.
Although United’s need for a midfield revamp is evident, Neville insists that it is not the only issue that Ten Hag and the club’s board must address.
‘To be honest with you, I’m not sure which area requires full strengthening until we know which players the incoming manager prefers,’ Neville said on the club’s official website.
‘We know the areas they absolutely need to actually strengthen,’ he added. ‘Central midfield is an absolute necessity. An absolute necessity. Manchester United need midfield players.
‘They also need a centre-forward. I know Cristiano Ronaldo is likely to stay and he’s an absolutely brilliant performer, but they need a centre-forward. Centre-forward is a must.
‘I think there’ll need to be a wide player, just to beef up the squad, and I think full-backs are absolutely critical in the modern game. [There are] four full-backs there, it’ll be interesting to see which two, three or four of those are liked.’