Ruben Amorim has already kickstarted the revolution of Manchester United in the last few weeks, wasting no time in making his mark on the first-team squad.
The 40-year-old made his first senior addition on the form of left-back Patrick Dorgu, joining up with the Red Devils after the hierarchy forked out £30m to lure him away from Serie A side Lecce.
However, the Dane would be the only new addition in the January window, but numerous players left Old Trafford – seemingly not part of the manager’s long-term plans.
Antony, Marcus Rashford and Tyrell Malacia all departed on loan, looking to gain valuable first-team minutes elsewhere after failing to secure a first-team place under Amorim.
Multiple of the aforementioned players joined under the previous management of Erik ten Hag, undoubtedly proving to be a waste of money – but some of the Dutchman’s additions have made a positive impact in the North West.
Ten Hag’s best signings as Man Utd boss
Noussair Mazraoui joined the club in a £12.8m deal from Bayern Munich, bolstering the full-back department – but the Moroccan has thrived with the switch to a back three, featuring on the right-side of the trio.
The 27-year-old has featured 25 times in the Premier League to date, starting each of the last 10 matches, undoubtedly being one of the shining lights of what has been a dismal season to date.
Manuel Ugarte also joined in what proved to be Ten Hag’s final window in charge, costing United a huge sum in the region of £50m from French outfit PSG.
However, the Uruguayan has proved to be worth every penny of his big-money transfer fee in the opening months of his time in England, winning 2.7 tackles and 7.5 duels won per 90 in the league throughout 2024/25.
Despite the impact of the aforementioned duo, one other player has since been touted as the Dutchman’s best addition, but Amorim may want to finally offload him in the summer.
The player for Amorim needs to offload in the summer
Ten Hag splashed over £600m on new signings during his time as a United manager, with many of his additions failing to make the grade – as seen by the decisions to loan out Malacia and Antony last month.
However, there is still a whole heap of deadwood for the new manager to clear out in the summer to allow him to transform the squad and make the changes he desires – enabling him to be a success at the club.
One player who could decide to finally offload is centre-back Jonny Evans, with the 37-year-old unfortunately past the level of a defender needed to push the club back towards the top end of the table.
The former Northern Ireland international re-joined the Red Devils eight years after leaving in the summer of 2023, offering Ten Hag an added option in the defensive department.
Despite his age, Evans would register 30 appearances across all competitions in 2023/24, leading to journalist Jay Motty labelling the experienced man as “Erik ten Hag’s best signing”.
However, this season, he’s struggled massively with injuries, with his age starting to come into play, restricting him to just six league appearances – only one of which has come since Amorim’s arrival.
Games played
6
Minutes played
290
Pass accuracy
89%
Tackles won
1.5
Duels won
6.8
Interceptions made
1.2
Dribbled past
0.7
His contract does expire at the end of the current campaign and with his age and current wage, which sees him earn £65k-per-week, it’s a no-brainer for the manager to offload the defender – enabling added investment in such an area.
He’s been a phenomenal professional throughout his career, racking up over 230 appearances for United, but unfortunately, football is a cutthroat industry, with brutal decisions needing to be made to get the side out of the mess they find themselves in.
No doubt, Evans will likely go into a coaching role upon his retirement, with the hierarchy needing to honour his services with a role in the set-up as the club looks to build for the future and end their long wait for a Premier League title.
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