Red Devils were only able to land Fellaini on transfer deadline day.
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Manchester United are said to be surprised about the level of criticism they have received of late about their dealings in the transfer market this summer, according to reports in the Daily Telegraph.
The Premier League champions were only able to bring in one new player on deadline day with the £27.5m purchase of Everton midfielder Marouane Fellaini, although they failed to land his team-mate Leighton Baines after it became clear to the club that the Merseyside giants were not prepared to allow both of their star men to leave Goodison Park this season.
However, it is understood that new United head coach David Moyes will now keep a close eye on the England international’s progress with the Toffees this season, before deciding whether or not to return with another offer for the attacking left-back in the January transfer window.
Moyes had made the recruitment of a new left-back, centre-back and attacking midfield player his number one priorities when he arrived at Old Trafford from Everton earlier this summer.
But the club have been insistent that the addition of these players is a long-term project and that they will not be rushed into paying over the odds for players when they already have a squad that won last season’s Premier League title, while Moyes also needs time to make his own assessments of the squad that he has at his disposal.
“This was always going to be a difficult transfer window with a new manager,” a United source said, “But the club wouldn’t change anything we did in the transfer window.
“We’ve kept Wayne [Rooney], our biggest concern. We’ve got a lot of talent in with Fellaini and Guillermo Varela [the Uruguayan full-back]. [Wilfried] Zaha is in the squad and Adnan [Januzaj] has been promoted. No one’s gone out. We’ve got a big squad.”