Manchester United signing Emre Can would be a panic buy

After injuries to Scott McTominay and Paul Pogba, ESPN reported that Manchester United are considering moves for Emre Can and Sean Longstaff to provide cover.

The injury crisis has left Ole Gunnar Solskjær with a threadbare midfield. Only Andreas Pereira, Nemanja Matic and Fred are fit from the first team squad.

The injuries certainly increase the probability of United signing someone in January. So far, Solskjær has remained cautiously optimistic about new arrivals, claiming that he’d rather wait until the summer rather than compromise on his first choices.

Longstaff and Can have been linked previously with a move to Old Trafford, with United unsuccessfully making a bid for the former last summer. The 21-year-old Newcastle midfielder has continued to take huge strides forward this season.

Can, on the other hand, has struggled to get into Maurizio Sarri’s plans for Juventus. The signings of Adrien Rabiot and Aaron Ramsey have severely limited his game time.

The German midfielder was an important player for Liverpool before he moved to Serie A, but he isn’t what United need right now.

There has been a noticeable shift in the club’s transfer policy, with a much more thorough analysis of players being conducted before a move is considered.

Emblematic of this is the fact that United’s scouting system reportedly came up with a list of 804 names when Solskjær was searching for a new right back. A similarly extensive list is curated for each position, with the recruitment team narrowing the list of targets to at most 5 when it reaches Solskjær.

Eventually, Aaron Wan-Bissaka was signed in the summer, and the former Crystal Palace star has proven to be one of the best signings in the Premier League so far.

Harry Maguire and Daniel James were also high up on United’s list of prospective choices for their respective positions.

The reason no midfielder was signed in spite of the departure of Ander Herrera was because Solskjær couldn’t get his first choice in Longstaff. It’s clear that Emre Can is not, and the 25-year-old would merely be filling a temporary shortage created by injuries.

A much better option would be to go all out for Longstaff, or other targets like Jack Grealish and James Maddison. While these players would be considerably more expensive and difficult to acquire, they fit the profile the Red Devils are looking for.

United have resorted to panic buys in the past, and they almost never work out. The failures of signings like Angel Di Maria, Radamel Falcao and Memphis Depay prove that recruiting good players simply because they are available is an antiquated strategy.

Even if no midfielders can be signed, a better option would be to trust youngsters like James Garner and Dylan Levitt. The two teenagers have already made appearances in the Europa League and have massive potential.

While progress on the pitch has been glacial, the shift in transfer policy has produced more far-reaching changes. It would be a huge mistake to revert back to old ways just when things are improving.