Phil Thomas: Sir Jim Ratcliffe thinks he can sell his Man Utd duds… but who in their right mind would pay for them?
LET’S assume for one minute that Erik ten Hag was being a little economical with the truth.
Let’s assume the bulk of Manchester United’s squad — despite the manager’s denials — are available if the right offer comes in. However massive that ‘if’ may be.
Considering this is the man who thinks United are one of the most dynamic and entertaining teams around, it’s clearly unwise to take everything he says as Gospel.
So now, let’s just imagine you are director of football at a top-six club, with a ticket to Selhurst Park tomorrow when Ten Hag and his team face Crystal Palace.
Barring long-term absences, both are at full strength — this is theoretical, remember — and the remit is to find any players capable of taking your team to the next level.
Given the relative size, finances and clout, you’d imagine most would be in United shirts. And you would imagine wrong.
Probably Bruno Fernandes, but beyond him? Hmmm.
Yet as for the Eagles — well, there’s Eberechi Eze, Marc Guehi, Michael Olise and Jean-Philippe Mateta for sure.
And while that ignores a ring-fenced United trio of Alejandro Garnacho, Kobbie Mainoo and Rasmus Hojlund, it doesn’t include Palace’s freshly-signed Adam Wharton either.
While it shows again what a job sporting director Dougie Freedman is doing, for once this isn’t about why he should have been the first man Sir Jim Ratcliffe brought in.
It is about why Sir Jim’s grand plan to offload United’s big-earning flops is nothing more than hot air.
It is the stuff of fantasy. It cannot and will not happen.
And it’s why the bulk of the supposed £150million transfer kitty may be needed to pay off the duds if he does plan to sweep the decks.
United, in a nutshell, are stuck with them.
For someone who is supposedly planning a great
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