Manchester United’s move for Alexis Sanchez has promised a lot. We hoped at that moment that it could provide a Robin van Persie-like impact and catapult the team into the title contest.
Instead the transfer went down like a colossal bankruptcy, one that in cost terms is still costing the club millions of pounds.
Where the club deserves credit, it is using the Sanchez affair as a fresh start and using it as a “reality check” moment.
In the years following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement, United has chased big names.
From the failed search for Cesc Fabregas and Gareth Bale’s first summer, to the club’s record move for Angel di Maria.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Radamel Falcao and then Sanchez were all examples of United looking for short-term success by chasing big names.
It didn’t work and Sanchez seemed to be the final straw.
It was a great excess. Although there was no transfer fee, wages paid to Sanchez are too high and seem obscene in this financial climate. United finally said it was enough.
Unsustainable
United could not simply continue to pour big money into mercenary-type players as it fell further and further away from contention.
A decision was made last summer that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer deserves credit for focusing on the players who really want to play for the club.
He told The Telegraph: “We have to do due diligence – player character, player quality – that fits perfectly with this team.”
There have been no quick fixes, but United is looking forward to seeing the potential, with agreements like Alexis Sanchez, who is now 31 years old, seen as poor investments.
United has rightly acknowledged that the club is too far behind our Premier League competitors to expect one or two big names to make a difference. And even the attraction of the best has become problematic.
A review of the approach was needed, which also meant exaggerations. Players who did not want to be in the club like Romelu Lukaku were sold.
There has been a real focus on development and construction for the future, with players like Mason Greenwood and Brandon Williams coming forward.
The club’s website notes that United have the youngest average age of all teams in the Premier League this season, at only 24.8.
At the moment there are positive signs, green shots, that United is returning to the track and has a sense of direction.
Whether long-term success remains to be seen, but it is a refreshing change of direction that should help the club avoid a financial disaster by continuing to throw excess money on so-called superstars on the decline.
If Sanchez had arrived and had short-term success, United would not have taken this path. The policy would probably have continued.
The club has done well to recognize failures and try a new approach.
United has turned a negative experience on Sanchez into a new positive and exciting era, where it is hoped that success will finally be around the corner and even if it will not bring immediate results, the club will be healthier for this regardless.
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