Manchester United have not enjoyed a fine start to the season despite shelling out big money in the transfer market. The Red Devils remain underwhelming.

Former Man United star and now pundit Owen Hargreaves believes the club should not have spent most of their funds acquiring attackers.

United bought Benjamin Sesko, Bryan Mbeumo, and Matheus Cunha in the summer transfer window. All three are still finding their feet at Old Trafford.

Meanwhile, Man Utd sit in tenth place and have crashed out of the League Cup early.

Hargreaves, who played for the Red Devils between 2007 and 2011, believes Man Utd should have spent the money on reinforcing the engine room and the goalkeeping position.

He said (on The Breakdown): “Bruno is their best player by a country mile, then they go and sign two number 10s to play in his position, and he has to play as a defensive midfield player almost.

“I appreciate that you needed more goals. They (United) have thought that more goals will get us higher up the table than, say, a world-class goalkeeper.

“But actually, you have the best number 10 in the division with Cole Palmer, and you drop him (deeper) because you want someone to play through midfield because you have Cunha and Mbeumo.

“So why didn’t you just sign a central midfield player to play there and let Bruno do his thing with Cunha? Then a goalkeeper. It would have fixed a lot of issues.”

In truth, Hargreaves would likely be saying the same thing had United focused on signing midfielders instead and left the forward line untouched.

The reality is, this is a rebuild, and rebuilds take time. The hierarchy has a clear plan, and United are clearly taking a phased approach rather than a quick fix.

Two midfielders are already being lined up, and once they arrive, balance will naturally follow.

For now, Ruben Amorim‘s job is to maximise what he has. He must coax the best out of Fernandes, the new signings, and stabilise performances.

The squad may not yet be complete, but the foundation is being laid.