Manchester United are all at sea.

The vultures have been circling around Old Trafford for some time, but a damning start to their Premier League campaign has seen the inner workings of the club thrust under the microscope.

Murmurs that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could lose his job are increasing in volume after devastating home defeats to Crystal Palace, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal.

Tough start for Man Utd

Admittedly, things are looking good in the Champions League with impressive wins over Paris Saint-Germain and RB Leipzig, but the overall picture is not a pretty one.

And although a great deal of blame does deserve to land at the feet of Solskjaer, there can be no denying that his job has been made far more difficult by a muddled recruitment policy.

Their top-turvy summer transfer window was typified by their woeful failure to agree a move for Jadon Sancho and the chaotic scramble for first-team players on Deadline Day.

p1em9ufkqek9a178q1cne100maahb.jpg

Ince on Man Utd's transfer strategy

And with those summer failures clearly perpetuating issues at the club this season, United legend Paul Ince has offered his opinion on who the Red Devils should actually have bought.

According to the Metro, Ince told Ladbrokes: "Recruitment at United has been really, really poor. They’ve always had money to buy players. They’ve always had money to buy players.

"If you bring players in for those big amounts and you’re not playing them but the team is winning, then great.

"When you don’t play them and the team isn’t getting results, people will start questioning Ole about recruitment and results. Those two factors combined are going to put pressure on Ole. Recruitment and results.

p1em9ugl881k01i7q1s4fpka8a1d.jpg

"There are so many players out there who could have come into that Man United team. You look at Thomas Partey, Raul Jimenez.

"Last season United needed to bring in a striker and they go and get Odion Ighalo from China. What was that about? Go and spend £40m on Jimenez. He’s a proven striker, a scorer.

"You know, and then they go and get Edinson Cavani who will hardly play. You’ve got to look at the structure, the recruitment, the scouting system and think, ‘what are they looking at?’

"There’s a lot of good players out there, top, top players. Go and get these players. But they haven’t. If you’re going to spend the money, put them in the team. 

p1em9uhp551gemmd1qhmh001fe5f.jpg

"I’m not having this ‘you’ve got to give them time’ – you’ve got to put them in there straight away if you’re going to spend that money."

GIVEMESPORT's Kobe Tong says

While it must be said that the transfer market isn't some sort of pick 'n' mix where United could have had free roam, it's pretty difficult to argue with Ince here.

The Partey suggestion, in particular, makes so much sense just days after he bossed them in an Arsenal shirt, securing the Gunners' first win at Old Trafford in the league since 2006.

The Ghanaian would have slotted into the United XI far more seamlessly than Donny van de Beek and they could have bypassed negotiations by activating his Atletico Madrid release clause. 

p1em9udo4g1s34bthombfphngt9.jpg

The Jimenez deal would have been much tougher, especially given his Wolves contract extension in October signalling his happiness, but he surely would have been a better option than Cavani.

Hindsight is a beautiful, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't take a footballing expert to work out that United's recruitment policy has been all over the shop recently.