No-one can deny that Manchester United still need a significant re-build if they hope to become Premier League title-challengers again any time soon.
The club haven’t recovered since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure, with poor league positions and questionable transfers having left a lot of fans pretty disillusioned over the past few years.
But that might well be about to change. Bruno Fernandes’ addition in January was inspired, and represented a glimmer of hope that Manchester United’s recruitment may be improving.
And luckily for United, they’re still one of the richest clubs in the world, and could have loads of other young talents dotted around the Premier League and further afield to choose from.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has made no secret of the fact that he wants to strengthen his reinforcements going forward, and now, the club have drawn up their dream summer shortlist.
According to the Evening Standard, there are 14 players who United particularly have their eye on and could make a swoop for during the next transfer window.
Of course, it would be fanciful to think that United could get their hands on all of these talents, but the list still offers an interesting insight into the thought process behind the scenes at Old Trafford.
Centre Backs: Matthijs de Ligt (Juventus), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli).
With Harry Maguire in desperate need of a reliable partner to play alongside, either one of these two would certainly help to sure up the United backline.
Given that De Light only recently snubbed United to join Juventus, we’re sure United’s hopes aren’t resting on that one, but the prospect of Koulibaly joining the club seems a bit more realistic.
Recent reports have claimed that negotiations have taken place between United and Napoli with a view to the Senegal international joining in the summer – let’s see if it materialises.
Central Midfielders: Donny van de Beek (Ajax), Sean Longstaff (Newcastle), Declan Rice (West Ham), Jude Bellingham (Birmingham City).
There’s a prominent theme running throughout this summer wish-list: namely, that some of the individuals listed appear much more realistically accessible for United than others.
While Donny van de Beek is rumoured have his sights set on a move to Real Madrid, United know they will also have to fight foreign interest for the signature of 16-year-old Jude Bellingham.
Reports surrounding moves for Declan Rice and Sean Longstaff have died down considerably in recent weeks, but who knows - United might be playing the quiet game with those two.
Attacking Midfielders: Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Jack Grealish (Aston Villa), James Maddison (Leicester).
The names on this part of United’s summer wish-list won’t surprise anybody - they’re the most exciting young English attacking midfielders around.
Although his recent lockdown violation threw it into question temporarily, Jack Grealish still seems the most realistic option of the three, with Aston Villa in considerable danger of relegation.
With United thought to be watching their pennies, the £80 million+ valuations currently assigned to James Maddison and Jadon Sancho could well put them off for now.
Strikers: Erling Braut Haaland (Borussia Dortmund), Harry Kane (Spurs), Timo Werner (RB Leipzig), Odion Ighalo (Shanghai Shenhua), Moussa Dembele (Lyon).
What a prospective list this is. It’s no secret that United will be watching very closely to see if Spurs or Dortmund decide to sell Kane or Haaland this upcoming summer – as will everyone else.
Timo Werner could also make a fantastic addition to their frontline, if rivals Liverpool don’t get there first. We’re sure few United fans would turn their noses up at Dembele and Ighalo either.