Manchester United's rivals believe the club will be open to offers for Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford in January, with PSR very much on the club's mind.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the Old Trafford hierarchy want to ensure they get the balance sheet under control and their rivals expect United to be more willing to cash in this month, rather than waiting until the summer and pushing for exit before the financial deadlines.
June 30 is the last day of accounts for 2024/25 and although all twenty clubs avoided the PSR penalty, Manchester remains on the brink of financial losses, leaving them little room for error, especially without Champions League revenue .
The biggest profit maker is the sale of homegrown talent, which leaves Mainoo, Garnacho and Rashford as expensive assets to lose. Interested parties believe this could be the time to strike as United's negotiating power has waned in the summer, the Telegraph reports.
Mainoo has not signed a new contract with United since his breakout season at Chelsea. He currently earns £20,000 a week but wants ten times that if he wants to sign a new deal, which could be problematic.
Ruben Amorim underlined his desire to keep the club's best players, but was aware of the financial situation. “Our idea is always to keep the best players and the players we are building for this club,” he said last week. “But we know what position the club is in at the moment. We'll see.”
Garnacho, meanwhile, refused to celebrate a goal earlier this season and United captain Bruno Fernandes admitted the winger felt some fans had lost confidence in him. He is expected to be the subject of offers from foreign clubs at Napoli, one of the clubs credited with interest.
Rashford is the player most likely to leave in the coming weeks as the forward appears to be left out of Amorim's plans. He was dropped for the Manchester derby win in December and has not been seen since as the manager gave no guarantee that he will play again.
A host of foreign clubs, including Monaco and AC Milan, are interested in loaning Rashford, but a firm departure offer is unlikely to materialize in January. The player's high wages also remain an issue for any buyer.
United reported a net loss of £113.2m in the 2023/24 season, following losses of £28.7m in 2022-23. Under PSR rules, clubs cannot lose more than £105 million over a three-year period. Not all expenses go against their calculations and clubs can claim allowances known as “add backs”.
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