Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes lay out the ideal transfer strategy for United this January | OneFootball

Manchester United legends Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes have detailed exactly how they think the club should approach transfers going forward.

With the January transfer window fast approaching, Man United need to seriously consider what sort of moves they would like to make, particularly as they prepare to proceed into the business end of the season.

In fact, there are several pressing reasons why Butt’s and Scholes’ transfer strategy may have come at the perfect time.

Time to act

With the Africa Cup of Nations underway, United have been seriously short-staffed. Bryan Mbeumo, Amad Diallo, and Noussair Mazraoui are all unavailable for United, with the trio already missing the 2-1 loss to Aston Villa.

Although United put in an impressive performance during that thrilling match, the team struggled without these key players.

Furthermore, Casemiro was suspended for the match, and Kobbie Mainoo was injured, meaning that Bruno Fernandes and Manuel Ugarte were the only natural central midfielders available for the fixture.

After Fernandes was substituted following a hamstring setback, defender Lisandro Martinez had to lineup alongside Ugarte, highlighting United’s need for more midfield reinforcements.

With this in mind, the pair of United legends seem to think that they have the perfect transfer approach for Ruben Amorim to give his team the biggest possible boost.

The way forward

“Realistic one if Man United go back to bullying teams and buying their best players,” Butt stated on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, which he co-hosts with Scholes.

“I don’t mean Arsenal or City, but those next ones down, which we always used to do, they used to go to Tottenham and get their best player, Morgan Rogers, go and get him. Play him wherever, he’s better than what we’ve got at the moment,” he continued. Notably, Rogers scored a brace against United to hand Villa the 2-1 triumph.

“Nicky’s got a good point,” Scholes added. “We got Dwight Yorke, the best player from Aston Villa, Teddy Sheringham, and Robin van Persie from Arsenal. We used to go and get their best players. I’m not sure we’re in that position at the minute.”

While United have slipped down the Premier League pecking order in recent times, this kind of strategy could still work given the club’s historical magnitude.

After all, both Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha were top Premier League performers last season, with both players attracting interest from several clubs before choosing to make Old Trafford their home.

Clearly, Butt and Scholes have given this strategy a fair bit of thought. If United could pull it off, not only would it help Amorim to strengthen his squad, but potentially weaken their rivals in the process.

Featured image Clive Mason via Getty Images

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