Manchester United did not make a big splash in the transfer window as they did last January under Jose Mourinho when they splashed out a huge amount to sign Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal but the massive deal they did pull off was locking down Anthony Martial to a new 4 year contract.
Sanchez is still to prove himself at Old Trafford yet alone justify his incredible £300,000 a week deal which along with the deal given to Marouane Fellaini had caused United’s wage bill to increase by 10%.
Clearly Ole was not looking to use Marouane Fellaini as Mourinho did by throwing the big Belgian on late in games to use as a target man trying to grab an equaliser, so it made sense for United to let midfielder Fellaini leave late in the window to move to the Chinese Super League.
Plus the Belgian is still suffering from a calf injury and cannot play so he is not going to be a big miss for Solskjaer who had not even used the player in his stint at the helm at Old Trafford.
OGS made it clear that he hoped not to lose any players in the January window and with the exception of Fellaini he has managed to keep his squad intact which has to be a big plus.
United face a run of very tough games in the weeks ahead including Fulham in the League followed by the first leg of the Champions League two legged knockout round against French giants PSG away, followed by Chelsea away in the FA Cup, then Liverpool at home in the League, followed by Crystal Palace away and Southampton at home in the League before the 2nd leg against PSG at home before facing Arsenal away in the League and then facing Man City at home in the League.
So Ole will be needing his entire squad over the next couple of months and these upcoming games will not only decide United’s season and the future of OGS but United will also play a huge role in who wins the title as beating Liverpool and/or Man City will impact the title race enormously.
Given the form of Paul Pogba, the freshly re-signed Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford amongst other Red-Devils, United could end up having a very good season.
The improved offensive output under Ole was to be expected but the improved defence does come as a slight surprise and suggests Jose Mourinho was being rather negative about his defensive options as Lindelof and Bailly are looking solid and more and more reliable for United as the games go by.