It has been a rollercoaster of a season so far for Erik Ten Hag and Manchester United, who have notoriously struggled to maintain players’ fitness levels and challenge competitively against top opposition.

With Sir Jim Ratcliffe lining up a 25% stake in the club for £1.2 billion, which will allow him to oversee all sporting departments and give him the decision-making power, Manchester United are ready to embark on yet another refurbishment of their squad.

Over the past few years, they have tried to make a proper go at selling unwanted players, only to find themselves in a position without leverage. Those players are on big money contracts which alienates the majority of the European market to come in for them.

Players such as Harry Maguire and Scott McTominay were thought to be leaving last summer amid interest from West Ham, but a final fee could not be agreed and they remained past the transfer window. Those two players, who were certainly out of favour, are now two of the players who find themselves playing week in, week out.

The general direction of Manchester United’s transfer business and squad planning has been on a downward trajectory for the past decade. Too many decisions are being made on a whim, as well as giving managers all of the power only to sack them 12 months later.

This type of process therefore gives you unwanted players for the new manager to inherit, plus another outlay of several hundreds of millions needed to invest in players they want for their system.

It is about time Manchester United appointed a sporting director who can oversee a true recruitment policy on behalf of the club, no matter who the manager is. This is the European way that has been in effect for years.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his team are unlikely to get their hands dirty in January due to the length of time needed for a deal to be ratified by the Premier PINC League, but it is certain that the club need players through the door in an ideal situation.

With the potential departures of Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane, both of whom have either been dropped without question and remain on the bench, or ostracised from the squad completely for poor behaviour with no resolution in sight.

And so, Manchester United are once again in need of plugging gaps where they thought they wouldn’t need to.

With the links to INEOS’ other club, OGC Nice NICE , centre half Jean-Clair Todibo has been a player that Manchester United are routinely linked with and continually scouting. Priced at around £40 million, the 23 year old France international would be a welcome addition to United’s back line.

There are a number of players who are on their radar as a long-term Varane replacement: SL Benfica’s Antonio Silva, Bayer Leverkusen’s Edmond Tapsoba and Everotn’s Jarrad Branthwaite are all high on the list, with the club likely to bring in two centre halves in the next 12 months to add depth and needed quality.

In the attacking department, it is no secret that Manchester United need reinforcement. With Sancho most certainly leaving, Ten Hag can rely on Facundo Pellistri, Antony, Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and the returning Amad until the end of the season as wingers, but the Dutchman will want another striker to compete with Anthony Martial and Rasmus Hojlund.

It is so difficult to get the January transfer window right, with over-inflated price tags on offer for players who then need to adjust to, potentially, a new country, language and league is not an easy formula.

The Red Devils need to vastly improve on and off the pitch, with fans hoping the latter arriving in the form of Sir Jim Ratcliffe.