The days when Manchester United looked upon the winter transfer window so dismissively it was an afterthought are more distant than their last title.
Three of the most consequential United transfers in the past decade - Juan Mata, Alexis Sanchez and Bruno Fernandes - were all executed in January.
Ed Woodward once described the mid-season window as driven by the desperation of the seller, rather than the buyer. Woodward also dubbed the January market "fool's gold". The Sanchez deal was certainly foolish but Fernandes has been United's finest signing since Robin van Persie in 2012.
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That the best and worst United signings of the post-Ferguson era have come in January typifies the club's slapdash strategy. United eschewed a move for Fernandes months before he was driven into Carrington and the speculation in Portugal palpably irritated the communications department.
Last season, United made three loan signings and all were enforced. Newcastle recalled the haphazard Martin Dubravka, so United brought in Jack Butland, Cristiano Ronaldo's exit interview with Piers Morgan prompted a move for Wout Weghorst and injury to Christian Eriksen sparked an 11th-hour approach for Marcel Sabitzer.
Sabitzer was a worthy arrival. Weghorst was not. Overexposed due to the brittleness of Anthony Martial, Weghorst's two goals in 31 games were tap-ins and he failed to get off the mark in 18 Premier League appearances.
United need another goalscorer in January. They have mustered 25 goals in 18 games, only two shy of the 27 they tallied after the same number of matches last term when goals were hard to come by and there was an over-reliance on Marcus Rashford.
Similarly to the first third of last season, the majority of United's wins have been by one goal. The only one of their nine victories that came by a margin of more than one goal was against Crystal Palace, who hit the eject button in the League Cup.
Weghorst was a flop at Burnley, who had no intention of reintegrating him into their squad following promotion, and he is at Hoffenheim on loan. Weghorst did not score until his 10th game.
The Ineos Group's investment in United is expected to be finalised by the end of this month but it remains to be seen whether United will have significant backing in the winter window. Club sources claimed the deadline day loan signing of Sofyan Amrabat was only made possible by the funds from Dean Henderson's sale to Palace for a derisory £15m.
Yesteryear, Alex Ferguson mulled over Stan Collymore, Les Ferdinand and Andy Cole as the halfway point of the 1994-95 season. United made Newcastle an offer they could not refuse for Cole and did similarly nine years later for another No.9 in Louis Saha.
United do not have the financial muscle or the cachet to cherry-pick an England international striker now. Ollie Watkins signed a new contract with Aston Villa last month, Ivan Toney will have gone eight months without playing when his ban for breaching betting regulations ends in January and Dominic Calvert-Lewin has been injury-prone in the last two years.
Selling is pressing in January. United were open to severing ties with Jadon Sancho in the final week the window was open for clubs in the Saudi Pro League and they will have had four months to facilitate an exit route for their persona non grata.
Donny van de Beek has such a bleak future at United he has played 19 minutes all season and has been omitted from 13 of their 18 matchday squads. Van de Beek's agent, Ali Dursun, has had oodles to arrange a new home for one Ajax alumni not granted special privileges by Erik ten Hag.
The upcoming European Championship is relevant. The Netherlands squad is so underwhelming that Weghorst started in their wins against the Republic of Ireland and Gibraltar over the last week, so Van de Beek - in exile since he withdrew from the last Euros - would have an outside chance of playing his way back into the squad if he moves.
January is realistically the last window United have to obtain a fee for Martial. Barring a sudden upturn in form, it would be rank mismanagement to extend the contract of a relic who was cheered off by the Old Trafford denizens during the humbling by Newcastle United.
Martial was loaned to Sevilla in January 2022 and if he has the desire to return to the France squad then his agent Philippe Lamboley ought to start yapping. Lamboley brazenly undermined Jose Mourinho the day before he was sacked and Ralf Rangnick barely two weeks into his interim manager tenure.
Shifting a winger and a striker would make ample room for a new striker. One developed in the Eredivisie would not cut it. Luuk de Jong, scoreless in 12 appearances for Newcastle in 2014, is third in that league's goalscoring chart.
It would be foolish to move for him.
