Re: 2024/25: INEOS, Sir Jim, and a New Era for Manchester United
The 2023/24 season saw Manchester United narrowly miss out on a Champions League place and, instead, secure Europa League football. This, along with being knocked out of the FA cup, ultimately saw the United hierarchy pull the trigger on Erik ten Hag's time in the dugout. The decision was made easier, however, by the Dutchman's reluctance to concede much of his decision-making power regarding transfers.
In other league news, Burnley, Sheffield United, and Luton Town were relegated (sorry, fans of those clubs), while Leicester City, Leeds United, and Southampton returned to the Premier League for the 24/25 season.
As far as European competitions go, United were drawn in Group E of the Europa League, along with LASK, Toulouse FC, and Royal Union Saint-Gilloise.
I'll post another update after deciding transfer priorities and current players listed for sale/"leaving on a free." (Immersion counts for something, in my opinion, so I'll be terminating Amrabat's loan in-game, selling van de Beek and Greenwood.) There may also be some interesting developments regarding the futures of a few current players, too. Stay tuned.
Nice one - beware that doing a story is about longevity: either be detailed about a shorter period of time (one or two seasons), or try to rush and by doing so cover a long distance.
As a Dutch Ajax-fan, I never saw Ten Hag as a good fit for Man United. Just scroll back through the pages in the general discussion: it has nothing to do with quality, it's just that in The Netherlands, we split the roles of 'manager' and 'head coach' - good head coaches (like Ten Hag) are inexperienced as managers and vice versa. So, to immediately thrust them into that role at arguably the most demanding club in the world in England, is..., well: irresponsible.
And in the shoes of Ten Hag I understand to take the given chance, but from the club's management perspective: bad choice. Hopefully your future one will be better.
i had high hopes for ten hag. i'm a united fan, but espn+ lets me catch a ton of football and watching the way his ajax side played made me a huge ten hag fan.
i still have hope that he'll turn things around, as i do believe injuries have killed us this season. to come into a united side in the state we were in, get third, get to two finals, win a trophy, and rack the win percentage he reached--all while dealing with a string of headaches (ronaldo, takeover circus, etc)--is insane. i don't think fans should be calling for him to be sacked; i think we should want him--and players--to learn and improve. the modern game isn't bunnies and flowers, though.
so while i back ten hag in real life, in fc 24, i wanted to do something different.
the introduction of a "best-in-class" recruitment team at manchester united has seen the club go through its squad with a fine-tooth comb in an effort to conduct a thorough assessment of its players. the club believes in the qualities of its players, but admits that high managerial turnover without a proper recruitment structure has led to a squad with a mix of signings from five different managers. for this reason, it's been decided that several players may benefit from a move to a club better suited to their individual skillset. wages and injury record will also play a role in this process.
sir jim ratcliffe and his team were rumored to be unimpressed by the signing of certain players, with casemiro, in particular, being mentioned by several outlets. omar berrada is keen to implement a two-year policy like he did during his time at manchester city, which gives players two years to impress or risk being replaced. it's anyone's guess as to which players will be sold, but sales will mean a boost in united's transfer budget.
sir jim is also rumored to be actively seeking recommendations for a "marquee" signing as a sign of intent of his vision for manchester united's new era.
after weeks of discussion, presentations illustrating the vision for united's future, tours of old trafford, carrington, and the proposed sight of a new stadium, manchester united have convinced julian nagelsmann of the project and the german coach has agreed to become manchester united manager in a shocking turn of events that will also see thomas tuchel take over as the head coach of the german national team ahead of the 2024 euros.
nagelsmann is eager to get to work and is looking forward to meeting up with the players and coaching staff. meetings with united's recruitment team will also be held over the next few weeks as transfer strategies for the next several years are identified and implemented, beginning with compiling a detailed list of targets for this summer. nagelsmann also plans to work closely with united's academy directors and coaches to ensure the club maintains its strong tradition of promoting from within its youth ranks.
tomorrow, we'll take a look at priority positions to strengthen, transfer targets, focus for youth scouts, and players who will be sold.
which positions do you think united should look to prioritize? which players would you like to see united target? keep in mind, i'll be taking nagelsmann's transfer history into my decisions, too, along with his tactics. see you tomorrow!
If true that you will try and do transfers in the style of Nagelsmann, it ought to be a lot of 'out with the old, in with the young' because that's his style. Big players from smaller leagues, or smaller clubs, or young and in development, but no arrived stars.
Cresswell, Branthwaite, Philogene from England, Knauff and Netz from Germany. Lukeba, Kalimuendo and Cherki from France; those are typical Nagelsmann-players - getting them just before international breakthrough.
after several meetings and strategy sessions, newly appointed manager julian nagelsmann and manchester united's recruitment team have identified priority positions to strengthen in the summer transfer window. following the free departures of anthony martial and raphael varane, bringing in a new striker to rotate and even challenge rasmus hojlund and a first team quality centerback will be the first steps.
omar berrada is also not convinced that brazilian winger, antony, is able to meet the demands of the premier league. antony, himself, has met with nagelsmann to discuss his struggles in england and it's been decided that a loan abroad with an option to buy could be the catalyst that allows the brazilian to rediscover his form out of the manchester united spotlight. nagelsmann is a fan of amad diallo, but it's believed that that young attacker is not happy with his minimal minutes since joining united and will take convincing in order to stick around. garnacho's youth and need for further development and patience mean united are actively looking at right wing options, as well.
crystal palace winger, michael olise, was linked with a move to old trafford during ten hag's tenure and a deal was believed to be all but wrapped up before ten hag and united parted ways. berrada and nagelsmann are also in agreement that olise fits the profile--and price tag--of what they're looking for in a wide player, so a deal for olise could still be possible this summer.
jadon sancho will be sitting down with nagelsmann and united director of football, dan ashworth, to discuss the events leading to the winger's fallout with erik ten hag, as well as the club's expectations for player behavior. it's unknown if sancho will be staying at united at this time, but united's pursuit of a winger will depend on whether or not sancho stays.
christian eriksen, donny van de beek, and casemiro are reportedly up for sale, as well, as the club's new structure will see a shift from handing big contracts to older players with no sell-on value. eriksen's free transfer isn't thought to have been a poor decision, but injuries have seen the danish playmaker decline since he joined united. casemiro, as well, is seen as not fitting the profile of player for nagelsmann and the brazilian midfielder is also seeking to finish his career elsewhere, with clubs from south america, italy, france, and the saudi pro league expressing interest. van de beek is seeking a move to rekindle his career. losing three midfielders with scott mctominay, mason mount, and kobbie mainoo as the only options remaining means united will be looking at versatile midfielders who can contribute on and off the ball.
finally, in a shock bit of breaking news (completely fictional and in no way representative of my thoughts or wishes, mind you), dutch left-back tyrell malacia has been forced to take an extended leave from football following further setbacks to his recovery from a long-term injury and subsequent botched operation, which saw the young fullback miss the entirety of the 23/24 season. malacia has united's full support, but the club will also be looking at left-back options.
so there you have it: striker, centerback, left-back, central midfield, and potentially a right winger. united are wary of selling too many players, as a balance of youth and experience will be needed. nagelsmann will continue to work closely with united's academy, as well, in an effort to identify academy players on the cusp of joining the first team in training and also to identify profiles for youth scouts.
@sonofthepitch Interesting start, I must say. I don't think Ratcliffe will stick with ten Hag in real life, unless he accepts a 'head coach' role, rather than Ferguson-style 'manager'. I hope for our sakes that, in real life, ten Hag does accept that change, because I think he's be good at that.
If you are tracking 'real life', remember that we are in a hell of a mess financially with regard to FFP (or whetever it's called these days), and maybe you therefore need to find 'bargains', in terms of new signings. Unless, that is, you get decent money for some of your outgoings. Personally, I think you'll be lucky except, perhaps Jadon Sancho (although it might be an interesting development if you kept him now that Nagelsmann has replaced ten Hag). I can't see you getting much for the other players you listed, except perhaps Greenwood and Casemiro. When I sold Casemiro in my own career save, I got £95 million for him, so there's a challenge for you 🙂
In terms of buys, I'd recommend Rayan Cherki, most definitely, as @Danimal5981 says. I'd also go for Ander Barrenetxea, who is low priced and pretty good. In defence, you should consider Luca Netz at left back (you maybe need to replace the always-injured Luke Shaw). Oh, and anyone who reads my career stories won't be surprised at the next one - Facundo Farias. He's at Inter Miami, so there's a United connection through Becks, which you could use in the storyline. He's down as a CAM, but if you get him (he's pretty cheap in the overall scheme of things) and convert him to a CF, you'll find him just about the most prolific striker in EAFC - I do, every time. You need someone to bang in the goals, we need someone like that in real life, too, and he's it. Looking forward to seeing how this develops...welcome aboard.
@sonofthepitch Interesting transfer. I don't think it's the case now, but United did have a partnership agreement with Royal Antwerp at one point, which makes this connection all the more interesting.
in their two new additions--kevin danso and george ilenikhena--manchester united have addressed their top priority positions early on the in transfer window.
in kevin danso, united identified a powerful presence in the backline who is young, but also has plenty of experience as a mainstay in the starting eleven. nagelsmann will look to danso's physicality and aerial presence to compliment lisandro martinez, and hopes to establish and strengthen that partnership during preseason. danso nearly joined napoli in the summer of 2023 after kim min jae joined bayern munich and danso's performances helped lens secure a second place finish in ligue 1, but lens were able to hold onto the austrian centerback for another season. former united defender, raphael varane, returns to rc lens as a free agent after united allowed his contract to run down. varane was part of the lens youth setup for nearly a decade before being promoted to the first team in 2010.
studied football fans will recall that julian nagelsmann brought exciting young attacker, mathys tel, to bayern munich in the summer of 2022 and had plans to turn the versatile french forward into a prolific attacker. in a similar move, united's manager worked with the recruitment team to identify ilenikhena as a promising young player. the 17 year old ilenikhena is a confident and precocious talent who is blessed with power, pace, and excellent close control. while his youth means he can be aggressive and make the wrong decision here and there, there's a definite talent there, and one who nagelsmann believes he can develop into the next great striker.
with malacia's forced absence from football and benfica taking up the permanent option for alvaro fernandez, it's believed nagelsmann will set his sights on a young left-back who can seamlessly rotate with the injury-prone luke shaw. french giants paris saint-germain have shown interest in casemiro, as well, which means united are ramping up their efforts to narrow down their search for a defensive midfielder.
julian nagelsmann prepares to join up with his germany squad ahead of the 2024 euros, but not before meeting the newest addition to his manchester united squad.
@CO88LER5 i've read recently that united have sent scouts to watch ilenikhena in recent weeks. the belgian league has seen an influx of young talent recently--nusa, skov olsen, ilenikhena, vermeeren, amoura, and el khannouss, to name a few. i like the idea of united getting back to establishing relationships with clubs throughout europe; it could really help us when it comes to transfer negotiations. (lord knows we need all the help we can get.)
a few squad and potential transfer updates for manchester united as the summer window rolls on without manager julian nagelsmann, who is currently with the germany squad for the 2024 euros.
as you can see from the image (it's small-ish, i know), i'm currently deciding between three defensive midfielders. i really like mats wieffer, united have been linked with amadou onana and he would be premier league-proven, and then alan varela is a player i've watched for a few seasons now who was also very impressive against arsenal in the first leg of their champions league tie. open to suggestions, though.
This is interesting. I'm doing a Man United career myself, also starting a year ahead in time, so there are quite a few similarities. Though also quite a few differences, and it will be interesting for me to see a different take on the current situation. Welcome aboard mate!
Kevin Danso was on my shortlist too. I opted for Edmond Tapsoba in stead, but I suppose we both identified the position to be in need of strengthening.
@JustinCase0110 i've read through yours and it's really good. do you play on a pc? your graphics and whatnot are nice, as well.
like you, i try to find that balance between keeping things realistic (players we're actually linked with) and doing what i think would make sense. most of the time i won't make a ton of signings and i'll take on a true rebuild that requires a few seasons
@sonofthepitch wrote: i've read through yours and it's really good. do you play on a pc? your graphics and whatnot are nice, as well.
like you, i try to find that balance between keeping things realistic (players we're actually linked with) and doing what i think would make sense. most of the time i won't make a ton of signings and i'll take on a true rebuild that requires a few seasons
Thanks mate, appreciate the feedback. No, I'm on PS5, though I do the writing from a pc. I remember starting writing these stories, feeling quite inadequate in terms of the graphics, so it was mostly textbased at first. Slowly adding a few screenshots and graphics too, learning as we go.
I usually find my way 6-8 seasons into a save, so yeah, I'm not for the quick fixes either.
@sonofthepitch wrote: i'm not super tech savvy, so i can't figure out how to get screenshots from my series x.
Well, me neither. I have a twitter account for this sole purpose really. So I used to just press the share button and post directly on my twitter.
However, recently they changed it so screenshots are saved in a PS-app in stead. So now I need to open my PS-app and share on twitter from there. And the images are sometimes not as "clean" as they used to. It gets a bit blurry sometimes.
I don't know if any of this is helpful, but that's just how I do it.
following germany's fantastic run to the 2024 euros final, where they lost 2-1 to england, newly appointed manchester united manager julian nagelsmann addressed the media ahead of what promises to be a busy preseason for the red devils.
speaking in a press conference at old trafford, nagelsmann stated that united's summer transfer business is complete and he is happy with his squad. considering player departures, a much-needed clearing out of some players, and ffp restrictions, he and dan ashworth had their work cut out for them heading into the transfer window, given the expiration of the contracts of raphael varane and anthony martial. this left a major lack of depth in united's striker and centerback positions. these were united's first pieces of business, and austrian centerback, kevin danso, was purchased from rc lens, while young nigerian striker, george ilenikhena, was brought in from royal antwerp after a stellar season for the belgian club.
jadon sancho, too, made demands of united's hierarchy that they didn't feel were warranted, which led to the winger submitting a formal transfer request. newcastle united made a bold approach for the 24 year old, hoping to capitalize on his unrest with a lower offer, but it was ac milan who turned sancho's head and agreed to a fee that more closely matched united's asking price.
brazilian winger, antony, has found adjustment to the premier league to be more difficult than anticipated and personal issues off the pitch haven't helped. ashworth isn't completely sold on antony's suitability to united's long-term plans, but agreed to listen to loan offers for the brazilian. la liga side, real sociedad, agreed to a one-year loan with an option to make the move permanent, which united and antony accepted.
two wingers out the door forced united to finally put pen to paper on a deal for michael olise, who agreed personal terms with united months prior. amad diallo, as well, was given assurances from nagelsmann regarding first team minutes and will remain a part of the squad this season.
tyrell malacia's absence and alvaro fernandez's move to benfica saw united bring in dutch left-back, bjorn meijer, from club brugge in a shrewd piece of business. the young fullback will provide solid competition for luke shaw, whose injury woes haven't gone unnoticed by ashworth.
it was widely believed that casemiro would be the next player in the twlight of his career to make the move to the saudi pro league, but an unexpected offer from paris saint-germain proved too good to pass up and the midfield veteran opted to join the ligue 1 giants. in need of a powerful midfielder, united signed mats wieffer from feyenoord, who nagelsmann and ashworth firmly believe will seamlessly adjust to the demands of the premier league.
finally, donny van de beek joined royal antwerp, christian eriksen moved to feyenoord, free agent anthony martial joined eintracht frankfurt, willy kambwala joined southampton on loan, and victor lindelof joined ogc nice.
nagelsmann will use the season to further assess his squad and a strategy is already in place regarding united's next few transfer windows.
as it stands, here is manchester united's squad for the 24/25 season
@sonofthepitch Is that an Xbox? Screenshot = BRIEFLY press the central 'X' on the controller (as if you were closing it down). You get the 'home' screen, with the actual game screen dimmed. Then press the yellow "y" button, and you save the screenshot. If you producse this stuff on a PC, access the Onedrive on your PC and find the 'pictures' folder. In there, you will see an 'Xbox screenshots' folder, where you can find them. In terms of getting them on here, I use 'Snip and Sketch' to save a JPEG and then add it to the story.
the 2024-25 premier league season is up and running, with august seeing the first three matches of the season, as well as the close of the summer transfer window. united played wolves, spurs, and forest in their first three fixtures.
