Manchester United is facing an unusual problem in the transfer market. While many opponents in the Premier League are heavily investing, the Old Trafford team only spent 148 million pounds and did not add any outstanding players other than midfielders.
It is worth mentioning that under Michael Carrick, Man United is leading a ranking that is more important than everything: the points earned since he was appointed in January. No team has earned more points than Man United during this period. However, in terms of transfer spending, the image of the "Red Devils" is completely different.
According to Transfermarkt data, Man United is only ranked 11th in spending in the summer of 2026. Meanwhile, Manchester City spent more than 400 million pounds, Chelsea and Tottenham exceeded the 300 million pound mark, and Newcastle, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Arsenal all invested more than 200 million pounds. Even the two newly promoted teams, Ipswich and Hull, also surpassed M.U in spending.
Carrick is not the type of coach who regularly publicly criticizes the club. He still affirmed his satisfaction with the players that Man United brought in, and appreciated the quality of the deals.
Certainly, I am extremely satisfied with the players we have recruited. I think we have had very good deals in terms of quality and player level" - Carrick said.
However, the reality is that Man United cannot complete all targets in the summer. They once asked to borrow Rayan Ait-Nouri on the last day of the transfer window but failed. Lewis Hall is also a target of interest, but Man United cannot meet Newcastle's requirements.
The limited ability to liquidate players also significantly affects the transfer plan. Manuel Ugarte was injured during his time playing at the 2026 World Cup, while Andre Onana was loaned to Trabzonspor and Joshua Zirkzee remained at Old Trafford. Man United once expected to earn a large sum of money from selling some players who were no longer in the plan, but in the end this revenue did not reach the expected level.
Marcus Rashford was also not bought outright by Barcelona after the loan period. The £26 million fee mentioned is considered too low, while Rashford is still considered a quality option and can play an important role in the squad.
If Rasmus Hojlund's transfer to Napoli is excluded from calculation, Man United's revenue from player sales in the summer of 2026 will become even more modest. This puts them at a disadvantage when competing in the market, especially in the context of a sharp increase in transfer fees.
The targets that Man United is pursuing such as Elliot Anderson or Mateus Fernandes all have very high prices. As clubs increasingly demand large fees, the "Red Devils" are no longer as easily competitive as before.
This situation also stems from ineffective investments in the past. The Antony and Casemiro deals left significant losses, while Man United still has to bear many unpaid transfer fees.
Ruben Amorim's reign also caused the club to suffer more losses, from an 11 million Euro compensation to Sporting CP to continuing to pay the Portuguese coach's salary after he was sacked.
Carrick believes that Man United has made good use of the money in hand. However, the inability to fill all the necessary positions means he will have to find a way to maximize the current squad.
