Gary Neville believes Manchester United need two more players to strengthen the squad before the transfer window closes.
Manchester United have already added Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos this summer, while a £70 million deal for Baleba has now been agreed. Carlos Baleba cleared his medical and is expected to be announced soon. But Neville thinks Michael Carrick’s squad still has obvious gaps to cover.
The former United captain was speaking after Saturday’s embarrassing 2-0 defeat at Hull City.
Gary Neville wants a centre-back and full-back
Gary Neville believes the Hull defeat was more than just a bad result. He felt Manchester United were beaten physically and struggled to deal with a home side that was organized and difficult to break down.
“Hull did everything they had to in terms of competing, being aggressive, organized and hard to break down.
“Manchester United fell short in those areas in the early stages of the game and they have struggled at times against teams that play deeper.”
That was particularly worrying for Neville because United are supposed to be moving forward under Carrick.
The former captain called the defeat a major warning and said too many United players failed to perform at the required level.
“It’s a massive wake-up call. Hull didn’t just match Man United physically but were better than them in that area and that will be the big disappointment for Michael Carrick.”
Neville’s biggest concern, however, is at the back.
United’s defence still needs work
Manchester United invested heavily in their attack last summer and have now spent this summer reshaping the midfield. Neville thinks the defence has been left behind.
“What it did highlight is that Man United defence isn’t good enough. To be fair the club probably know that, they rebuilt the forward line last summer and rebuilt the midfield this summer with a few signings.”
“I don’t know if they’ve got the money or not but they do need a centre-back, and they do need full-backs. They just do. There’s no other way of putting it really.”
That leaves Michael Carrick with another decision to make before September 3.
United’s next Premier League match is against Ipswich next Saturday, giving the manager a week to respond to what happened at Hull.
Baleba’s arrival should add more strength in midfield, but Neville doesn’t think that alone fixes the problems he saw at the MKM Stadium.
