Jose Mourinho has cut a frustrated figure in the preseason build up and his mood will probably not improve any time soon, with no joy on his transfer targets just yet. News has emerged that Mourinho missed out on one of his key targets Perisic when he tried to sign him last year. The club’s board are said to have been concerned with the high price tag for a player that is in his late twenties.
The knock-on effect of signing Sanchez
However, that did not seem to deter them when they brought Sanchez to the club and set him up with a huge weekly salary. The board were thought to also be concerned about how the arrival of Perisic might have hindered the development of Martial and Rashford.
However, those concerns appear to have been irrelevant now as both players struggled to find their way into the team last season. Martial is apparently at loggerheads with the manager, with some interesting Mourinho comments aimed at Martial’s absence from the squad as his baby was born. Far from being the supportive manager, he questioned why Martial had not returned earlier.
Martial missed out on France’s World Cup squad
Martial has not enjoyed life under Jose Mourinho and he had to watch on TV as his national team won the World Cup without him. Martial’s lack of game time meant that he did not make the squad they took to Russia. Now Martial seems more determined than ever to get a transfer away from his nightmare time at Old Trafford.
Rashford’s development has stalled
Rashford is another player that has struggled for minutes throughout the last season and it looks as though his development has stalled. He had a mediocre World Cup campaign with England but after the way he announced himself into the first team, you would think that a top manager would have been able to keep Rashford heading in the right direction. It would seem that Mourinho is more interested in bringing in established talent than nurturing the players at the United academy, if his press conferences in America are anything to go by.
Less than two weeks before the transfer window closes
Mourinho has several targets that he would like to bring in before deadline day and Perisic is still part of those plans. United’s interest in Harry Maguire could also gather some pace, as they look to strengthen that area.
