5 players Man United simply must sell in 2024, they cost over £170m combined👇

The January transfer window is always a pretty useful way of trimming the fat from a bloated squad, and it just so happens that Manchester United have more deadwood in their ranks than a poorly-maintained timber yard.

Here are the players we believe the Red Devils should be looking to move on and replace in the New Year – either in January or July – as Erik ten Hag attempts to construct a squad in his Total Voetbal principles…

Jadon Sancho

Let’s start with an obvious one.

It speaks volumes about how Jadon Sancho’s time at Old Trafford has unfolded that, even with Ten Hag’s frontline misfiring, you’d be hard pressed to find many Manchester United fans who would nominate the £73 million misfit as a solution.

Banished from the first-team ever since that public and very misguided shot across Ten Hag’s bows, Sancho is unlikely to ever feature in United red again, though finding a buyer could be tricky given the sheer size of his wages. Borussia Dortmund have already dismissed the prospect of a return to the Signal Iduna Park.

What is Saudi Arabia’s area code again?

Anthony Martial

Speaking of Saudi, is there a more typically Saudi Pro League player than Anthony Martial? With deep-pocketed Middle Eastern clubs raiding their European counterparts for big names on the wane – yes, that includes you Cristiano Ronaldo – no one would be surprised to see Martial follow in the footsteps of N’Golo Kante, Jordan Henderson and Fabinho.

The long-serving Frenchman also has interest in Turkey – because of course he does – and is clearly no longer capable of leading the line in the way Ten Hag wants after a series of injuries which have left him bruised and battlescarred.

According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Martial will not be offered a new deal. His current one expires in 2024. 

Raphael Varane

Now, if we consider Martial is no longer capable of influencing games for a club of Man United’s ambitions, then the opposite is true of Raphael Varane. Still arguably the finest natural defender in Ten Hag’s squad, the former Real Madrid ace showed he’s still got it with a colossal display against Liverpool.

But, as they say, the best ability is availability. And therein lies the problem. Varane would give even Martial a run for his money as far as time spent in the treatment room is concerned. And, with his 31st birthday approaching, it is hard to imagine that his fitness will do anything other than decline further in the coming years.

Victor Lindelof

Next year will be Victor Lindelof’s eighth as a Manchester United player. And that in itself is a reflection of the questionable squad management that has beset the Red Devils post Sir Alex Ferguson. Lindelof is a good player but not a great one, operating for a side which is sometimes good but strives to be great.

The Swede’s lack of authority and his tendency to lose concentration in key moments is a major reason why Man United have shipped goals at such an alarming rate this term. And, when everyone is fit and available, Lindelof gets into precisely no one’s first-choice United XI.

Scott McTominay

Now, hear us out. Yes, Scott McTominay is Man United’s top scorer this season. Yes, he single-handedly secured us three points against Brentford, and netted a brace in United’s best display of the season against Chelsea.

But, for all his threat in the final third, McTominay is arguably more of a hindrance than he is a help almost everywhere else on the pitch, offering next-to-nothing in the build up and lacking the technical ability to shine in a possession-based gameplan.

Fortunately, considering his age, his vast Premier League experience and his eye for goal, United could probably expect to bring in around £30 million if they decided to cash in on Scott the Scot. Funds which – while classed as ‘pure profit’ in Financial Fair Play terms – could be re-invested in signing a midfielder far better suited to Ten Hag’s blueprint.