It’s an intriguing time at Manchester United at present, what with Ralf Rangnick trying to get new ideas across at a time when the team are generally underperforming.
The Red Devils are certainly not out of the picture as far as finishing in the Champions League places go, given that there’s still almost half of the 2021/22 season still to play.
However, with little to no coherence on the pitch at times, and a seemingly disjointed way of working under the new management structure, United would have to be placed as the outsiders of the group of four teams in and around fourth spot – including West Ham, Arsenal and Tottenham – at the moment.
Decisions clearly need to be made in January that will positively affect the team for the second half of the campaign, and to that end, it makes the Donny van de Beek situation all the more surprising.
The young Dutchman has rarely featured for the club ever since signing from Ajax, where he was the mastermind for their run to the Champions League semi-finals.
If he were to be given a run of games at the Theatre of Dreams, it’s a fair bet that he could recapture that stunning form.
That now seems extremely unlikely after the Manchester Evening News reported that the player has been offered to both Newcastle United and Borussia Dortmund.
Any deal would still be subject to Ralf Rangnick’s approval of course, but if the manager didn’t intend to play the attacking midfielder, there’s little point in watching him rot on the sidelines.