Revealed: Man Utd’s plan if Cristiano Ronaldo leaves
Ben Jacobs
- 19 Jul 2022 16:54 BST
- 4 min read
Manchester United are yet to draw up a concrete list of potential replacements for Cristiano Ronaldo should he leave Old Trafford this summer and are hoping Anthony Martial will rediscover his form, CBS reporter Ben Jacobs writes for FootballTransfers.
Manchester United are planning based upon the fact Cristiano Ronaldo will stay, and they have the timeframe in their control. The challenge if Ronaldo stays is how motivated is he? How in tune with Erik ten Hag and the system and the tactics is he? He’s been distanced from all that, so physically he’s fit because he continues to train, but mentally and tactically is he ready for a Premier League season?
Related articles
The answer to that at this stage is probably no because he hasn't returned directly to Manchester United’s pre-season training.
But, Man Utd are not advanced on any kind of option to replace him at the moment because they were not expecting this. Ten Hag has been a little bit blindsided as far as the Ronaldo situation is concerned.
And we know that Dybala is going to Roma, so that's not an easy option for Man Utd, and whether Ronaldo stays or goes, in the short term they will have to be reliant on players like Anthony Martial, who Man Utd are basically just hoping becomes rejuvenated and re-finds a goal scoring touch under Ten Hag.
Potential targets
Historically, United had looked at Victor Osimhen, but that's not going to be possible and you will still probably need £80 million plus to even get Napoli talking. But I think the challenge there is that with Kalidou Koulibaly going it will not help anybody's cause and that particular player is very settled because he enjoys playing in that system and has thrived in it and Napoli, especially with Champions League, will not want to be seen as a selling club.
The Stuttgart striker Sasa Kalajdzic has also been looked at very loosely, but Man Utd have not progressed on that front. They've not gone back to him in any serious way since the Ronaldo news broke and Bayern Munich, Benfica, and even Southampton and Brighton have looked at him.
I think that Man Utd, were they to come in for somebody like him, would be panic buying and they obviously have to be very careful because the last thing they want to do is bring in a replacement - loosely speaking - for Ronaldo before anything is determined.
Firstly because they want to rely on Ronaldo this season and secondly because no player in their right mind is going to come to Manchester United right now if Ronaldo is still there or his future is hanging in the balance. Otherwise, what's the selling point? Particularly for a top striker, they're going to say, first and foremost, is Ronaldo staying or going and how do I fit in accordingly? And if Manchester United don't know the answer to that then they are going to get absolutely nowhere trying to buy a top quality player.
I think Man Utd haven't really drawn up a shortlist to replace Ronaldo yet, but they may have to move very quickly if at any point he finally gets a concrete offer.
