Man Utd face life and death problems

MU must keep Bruno Fernandes.

Manchester United have barely recovered from the shock of being eliminated from the EFL Cup by Grimsby Town when they face an even bigger problem: the summer transfer window has only 5 days left. At Carrington, Ruben Amorim and the Red Devils' leadership are forced to race to complete the final steps in time, or else the entire season will fall into disaster.

André Onana continues to be a concern. Returning from injury, the Cameroonian goalkeeper still made elementary mistakes: standing too deep, allowing Charles Vernam to shoot at the near post, then clumsily handling the high ball leading to the second goal.

MU has targeted Senne Lammens - a young talent from Royal Antwerp - as a long-term solution. Negotiations with the agent took place in Monaco, but progress has not been favorable.

Donnarumma (PSG) is also a possible option, but the high fee makes the deal unlikely. In that context, Amorim could even consider Tom Heaton - former England goalkeeper - for the weekend's game against Burnley.

MU cannot put their trust in Onana.

The defeat to Grimsby showed the fragility of the midfield. Manuel Ugarte was taken off after 45 minutes, Kobbie Mainoo is not trusted, Casemiro is easily out of breath, and Mason Mount is only truly effective when playing close to goal.

MU once pursued Carlos Baleba but failed because of the huge cost. Some alternatives such as Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace) or Morten Hjulmand - Amorim's former player at Sporting - are being considered, but the time is only a matter of days.

Since the beginning of the summer, MU has eliminated a group of players considered out of plan, including Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Antony, Tyrell Malacia and Alejandro Garnacho. Rashford has gone to Barcelona, Garnacho is close to Chelsea, Antony has been pushed to Real Betis, and Sancho has yet to find a way out. Notably, Rasmus Højlund - a £72 million contract in 2023 - has also been targeted by Napoli, opening up the possibility of leaving Old Trafford right before the deadline.

With the squad in disarray, Bruno Fernandes is one of the few remaining pillars. The Portuguese captain has turned down a huge offer from Al-Hilal, but the pursuit from Saudi Arabia has not stopped. If Bruno is lost, Manchester United will lose their spiritual leader and a rare source of creativity on the pitch.

With less than a week to go, Manchester United face a series of life-and-death decisions: change the goalkeeping, strengthen the midfield, offload unplanned players and keep hold of playmaker Bruno. The defeat at Grimsby is a wake-up call that the club has no room for hesitation – or else this season will spiral into another crisis.

Source: https://znews.vn/man-utd-doi-dien-loat-bai-toan-sinh-tu-post1580916.html