Manchester United aren't quite Premier League title contenders yet.

Yes, we might have joined thousands of fans in getting sucked into the prospect of United winning the title this season, but it's fair to say that the air has been let out of that particular balloon recently.

Besides, Manchester City now sit ten points clear of their local rivals and show no sign of stopping with Ruben Dias and John Stones forming a near-unbreachable partnership for Pep Guardiola.

Man Utd chasing the title

But that's not to say that United don't have a Premier League title challenge in their near future and there's good reason to think they're only a few signings away from going all the way.

And with the summer transfer window edging closer and closer, we decided to imagine the starting XI that United would need to construct in order to top the Premier League for the 2021/22 season.

Now, we're trying to be a little realistic here, so Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi won't be striding into the team, but we are making three key signings that will go straight into the line-up.

Man Utd's potential XI

We reckon that a centre-back, right-winger and centre-forward will be the key for United in 2021 and you can check out our picks for those positions, as well as the full starting XI, down below:

GK: David de Gea

Yes, Dean Henderson has been solid since his return to United, but De Gea is still the top shot-stopper at Old Trafford and he's gone a long way towards rectifying his post-2018 form this season.

RB: Aaron Wan-Bissaka

Again, there's no need for United to seek reinforcements at right-back because Wan-Bisska is one of the Premier League's finest and has even strengthened his performances going forward.

CB: Harry Maguire

Like it or loath it, Maguire is the best central defender at the 'Theatre of Dreams' and world-class on his day, so United should be looking for a partner as opposed to a successor for the Englishman.

CB: Jules Koundé

Speaking of which, with Dayot Upamecano on his way to Bayern Munich, the best option for United looks to be Sevilla's Koundé who has emerged as one of the finest young centre-backs in Europe.

According to WhoScored statistics, the Frenchman is the highest-rated central defender with at least 10 games in the position in La Liga this season, averaging 3.2 clearances and 0.9 tackles per game.

Sure, he might not be left-footed, but Koundé's concentration and competency on the ball would make him an upgrade upon Victor Lindelof and his injury record is far better than Eric Bailly's.

LB: Luke Shaw

Arguably the most improved player in the Premier League, Shaw has created more chances than any defender in the division this season and fully deserves his spot in this Red Devils line-up.

CM: Fred

It's staggering to think how far Fred has come since his dreadful first season in the Premier League, but he's now one of United's most underrated players and more than deserving of a place in the XI.

CM: Scott McTominay

With Paul Pogba set to leave and Donny van de Beek stapled to the bench, we're opting for 'McSauce' as the most likely midfielder to dash from box to box amidst a seven-goal season.

CM: Bruno Fernandes

Like, obviously. The bloke has produced the same amount of goal contributions as Lionel Messi since he signed for United, so he's comfortably the first name on the teamsheet.

RW: Kingsley Coman

Not Jadon Sancho??? Hold your horses, United fans, because although the Dortmund star is set to be available for a cut-price this summer, we think the club will be more focused on a new number nine.

As such, we're predicting that the Red Devils will seek to save some pennies with their shopping on the right flank and a move for Coman could save them €20 million at the very least.

Coman sits in that tantalising nether region of not being indispensable to Bayern Munich, but still maintaining top form, potentially wooing the United chiefs with six goals and 11 assists this season.

ST: Erling Braut Haaland

Are we being ambitious? Probably, but with both Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood struggling for goals, United could do a lot worse than trying to exploit Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's links to Haaland.

Sadly, the Borussia Dortmund star's £65 million release clause doesn't activate until 2022, but you'd have to imagine that United would need to jump the gun to stop the Real Madrid vultures circling.

As for why United would bother signing him, need we deign to list any more evidence than scoring 43 goals in just 43 appearances since moving to the Bundesliga? Yeh, I didn't think so.

LW: Marcus Rashford

On the back of a stunning goal against Newcastle, Rashford is going from strength to strength and hardly deserves to be dropped from the front three as he approaches his most prolific season yet. 

Is the XI realistic? Would it win the Premier League?

Look, at the end of the day, predicting the transfer market is about as difficult as, well, predicting the Premier League and we all know that Ed Woodward can be a little off-the-wall with his spending.

But make no mistake that - for all of City's brilliance this season - United aren't a million miles away from winning their first title since 2013. They just need a few transfers and tweaks along the way.