The January transfer window has always been perceived as a risky one to engage in. Almost seen as an admission of failure from the previous summer, January possesses a reputation as a month in which clubs try to desperately salvage a season that hasn’t gone to plan. Managers, backed into corners by poor results, seek solace in a late Christmas present to change their fortunes.

While undoubtedly it is a more arduous process to sign players, due to the disruption it can cause the selling club and the expected transfer fees due to this, the idea that January is not a window in which value can be found is a false one.

A dreadful start to the season has been tempered by a much more positive experience since the decimation at Brentford. Many questions surrounding areas of the team have been answered or, at least, short-term solutions found. Yet the centre-forward position remains a point of contention.

Anthony Martial has looked electric in his brief time under Ten Hag. 3 goals in 3 games in preseason, followed by 3 goals and 2 assists in 5 games in the actual season have converted Martial from an afterthought to the main man at United in just a few months. Injuries, however, have limited his time on the pitch to only 133 minutes. Marcus Rashford has filled in admirably in his stead, yet still seems more comfortable on the left-wing, as he lacks the ability to the hold up the ball and link play in the manner that Martial can.

Cristiano Ronaldo represents another option who has failed to impress when taking Martial’s place. Age, compounded by a lack of preseason, means Ronaldo is a poor fit for Ten Hag’s proactive philosophy, and the media furore whenever he is dropped makes him an ill-fitting substitute. More alarmingly, however, is that Ronaldo has been devoid of the clinical finishing this season that had been his main, and only, strength last year. A centre-forward who cannot press, nor finish, yet costs around half a million a week in wages from the bench is not a viable option for United.

The Telegraph report that Ronaldo will be allowed to leave in January  ‘if a good offer comes in’ and this should present United with an opportunity to find a replacement who suits the composition, and needs, of the squad more. Given the persistent nature of Martial’s injuries a viable alternative could prove crucial as the season progresses. A highly expensive deal for someone like Victor Osimhen seems far-fetched given the fees involved, so we will instead focus on three realistic forwards who United could target in January.

1. Brian Brobbey

The 20 year old is a raw but gifted footballer who offers a versatility that could make him the ideal candidate to supplement United’s forward line. Brobbey has played out wide, as a second striker and as the main centre-forward in his time for the various Ajax teams he has represented since aged 11. He is a physical, yet fast, technical, yet bullish, forward who can press as well as pass. Comparisons to Drogba are a heavy burden to carry but they underline the suitability the Dutch forward possesses to the Premier League.

Ten Hag is clearly a fan having tried to bring Brobbey to Old Trafford in the summer, after having overseen his return to Ajax the previous year on loan. United made an approach in August for the forward which Ajax blocked, according to Fabrizio Romano. Brobbey told Romano in an interview that his ‘dream club’ was United and that Ten hag had told him ‘he would like to have me at Manchester United.’

Doubts have, however, creeped in about Brobbey since United’s approach. He has lost his place in the team to Mohammed Kudus, a Ghanaian attacking midfielder, who has been functioning in a false nine role in Brobbey’s place. Brobbey has still contributed 4 goals and 2 assists in 9 league games despite this. With Ajax’s campaign faltering domestically and continentally, their number nine may be more valuable to them monetarily off the pitch than practically on it. Where an approach in the summer failed, United could have more success in January, if they’re willing to pay. 

Verdict: If the price is right (and by right, I mean cheap), Brobbey may be worth pursuing. His physicality and versatility makes him well-suited to the Premier League, and his age and status make him more appropriate as a squad option than Ronaldo. I don’t believe it would difficult to find a better alternative however.

Keep looking for now.

2. Alvaro Morata

The curse of the number nine shirt has gained such legitimacy that even Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea’s former manager, admitted ‘no one wants to touch it.’ Alvaro Morata was one of a long line of high-profile victims of the jersey.

The Spaniard’s £60 million move to West London was not a successful one, leaving on loan for Atlético Madrid just 18 months later. Despite scoring 15 goals and winning the FA Cup in his first year, Chelsea fans never took to Morata, the memory of the aggressive and ruthless Diego Costa too fresh in their minds to accept a new Spanish striker.

An inability to add this ruthless goal-scoring streak to his well-rounded game has always prevented Morata from entering Europe’s elite centre-forward club. Yet, despite a consistent lack of goals, Morata’s resume speaks for itself. Real Madrid, Juventus, Chelsea, Atlético Madrid and 57 caps for the Spanish national team is quite the playing career for a 29 year old. It speaks towards an appreciation amongst elite managers that fans do not share from the stands.

Luis Enrique, Morata’s national coach, confirms this idea. ‘The defensive level of Morata is unbeatable,’ he explained following a win against Czech Republic. It’s a motif for the Spanish manager who, in 2019, again praised Morata as ‘spectacular for us because of the work he puts in.’ Morata is also as comfortable on the wing as he is through the middle, with Enrique saying this sets him apart from his Spanish counterparts.

Enrique seeks to implement a comparable philosophy of football to Ten Hag given the influence they share from Cruyff. A forward’s contributions without the ball are as important as their abilities on it. Enrique details how Morata ‘has an intelligence when it comes to pressing and physical conditions beyond any doubt.’ Statistics confirm this with the forward ranking in the 77^th percentile for tackles, the 74^th for pressures, and the 93^rd for blocks. He’s also on the record as saying, ‘I’m willing to play any position.’ This selflessness and desire to sacrifice himself for the team, coupled with his positional versatility, would make Morata a potentially excellent option for Ten Hag’s philosophy and, therefore, United. 4 goals in 492 minutes in La Liga this year suggest a quietly efficient season as well.

Morata’s contract with Atlético expires next summer so there may a sense of urgency to try and capitalise on the financial worth of the player from their end. United could try and exploit this in a cheap deal to acquire a player who would offer a similar skillset to Martial, helping to maintain a consistency to Ten Hag’s game plan in the French forward’s absence. When Rashford or Ronaldo play the expectations from the striker shift and, thus, the expectations from the team shift with them.

The fact that Morata will be a free agent come the summer may give United pause however. Another forward could be targeted in January before swooping in six months later, on a free, for an experienced striker who wouldn’t need the same type of introduction to English football. Morata’s wages come in at around £125,000 as well, which suit the role in the squad he would be fulfilling much more than Ronaldo’s.

Verdict: Morata’s skillset suits Ten Hag perfectly and his experience, and profile, would complement, rather than intimidate, Martial (as has happened with previous strikers brought to the club). The allure of a free transfer, while utilising the saved funds elsewhere, is too tempting however.

Keep looking but revisit in the summer.

3. Cody Gakpo

According to The Mirror, Cody Gakpo would be a Manchester United player right now if the club’s budget had allowed for it this summer. It was often described as a choice for Ten Hag between his former starlet, Antony, and the PSV forward, Gakpo, but this reports appears to indicate the Dutch manager wanted both. Let’s take a look to see if the club should revisit this option in January.

Gakpo is a right-footed left-winger who hails from Eindhoven, having progressed through the PSV youth system all the way to the first team. He made his debut in 2018 but was slowly integrated into the side by his then manager, Mark van Bommel. In the 2019/20 season Gakpo would fully establish himself in the starting XI, scoring 7 goals and assisting 7 more in 25 league games. This would reduce to 7 goals and 2 assists the following season, but fluctuations in performance are natural for a young player.

The 2021/22 season marked Gakpo’s ascension into the wider European consciousness however. 21 goals and 15 assists in all competitions saw the Dutch winger win the Eredivisie Player of the Year award and make his debut for the Netherlands. This year has seen him maintain, and improve upon, this form with an outrageous 13 goals and 10 assists in just 16 games; a higher rate of contribution than Haaland in 2022/23.

Would it make sense, however, for United to invest in yet another left-winger? It would appear yes, but only if the long-term ambition was to convert the Dutchman into a centre-forward.

Gakpo stands 6 foot 2 inches and possesses a pace and directness that feels reminiscent of Arjen Robben, given his penchant for cutting in onto his stronger foot. He is skilful but perhaps lacks the technical consistency of your stereotypical winger, yet his frame and speed provide ample compensation for this. And there is a decisiveness and power to his finishing that ranks him amongst the most effective in Europe this season. Louis Van Gaal, his national manager, appears to recognise this having started Gakpo in the number 10 position in the Netherlands’ most recent game; a match where Gakpo scored and won Man of the Match.

There is a template for this exact transition already in Premier League history as well. Robin van Persie was a tall winger plying his trade for Feyenoord before being signed for Arsenal, by a manager who believed his future lay up front. While it did take time for van Persie to truly flourish as a number nine, this can be primarily attributed to persistent injury problems. Once he found consistent fitness van Persie became one of the best strikers in Premier League history, winning the silverware his performances deserved when he chose to upgrade from London to Manchester. If Gakpo chooses Old Trafford as his next destination it may provide a similar path to success.

The transition from Dutch football to English football is not an easy one however. If United are to take a longer-term perspective on their success they may see Gakpo as an integral part of their 23/34 campaign, rather than an immediate contributor in this one. This protracted plan would lend itself to the potential positional change he may experience as well, from winger to centre-forward.

So would it make sense to prioritise a player for next year in this season’s transfer window? Bruno Guimarães shows us yes. This yes becomes doubly so given the wide-ranging interest Gakpo is generating across Europe; he may not be a PSV player come the summer, especially with a World Cup, where the Dutchman may thrive, preceding the January window.

Verdict: Gakpo offers a physicality and directness that would appear to lend itself to the Premier League. He’s a young and hungry player who is ready to take the next step in his career, and it’s exactly this profile of player United should be prioritising.

Pull the trigger, before someone else does.

Ronaldo has contributed little to nothing from the centre-forward position this year; even an out-of-position Gakpo would offer more from a pressing and penetrative perspective. Morata could be signed in the summer on a free to offer a more traditional number nine, while Gakpo switches between the left and the centre as Ten Hag sees fit.

Gakpo/Rashford —- Martial/Morata — Antony/Sancho would constitute the strongest attacking selection since the days of Ferguson. The fact that all of Ten Hag’s targets have performed so well thus far only adds to the attraction of a winger he seemed desperate for in the summer. United would be wise to give Ten Hag his late Christmas present.

Darragh Fox