I wouldn't turn my nose up at Mateta personally. He's a right handful and in the right system and with the right players around him he could be good for us.
If we don't manage to land our top targets I wouldn't be against trying to lure Ivan Toney back from Saudi Arabia either. I think he could give us a really good 2-3 years whilst we bide our time for the next major Striker signing.
Still think it's mental we didn't go for him when he left Brentford. He'd have scored far more goals than Hojlund and he left for less money too.
comment by Tyranny of the majority (SE85) (U21241)
posted 1 minute ago
I wouldn't turn my nose up at Mateta personally. He's a right handful and in the right system and with the right players around him he could be good for us.
If we don't manage to land our top targets I wouldn't be against trying to lure Ivan Toney back from Saudi Arabia either. I think he could give us a really good 2-3 years whilst we bide our time for the next major Striker signing.
Still think it's mental we didn't go for him when he left Brentford. He'd have scored far more goals than Hojlund and he left for less money too.
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I would take Mateta for around £40-£50m.
I would have taken Toney for about £40m last summer too. Although I feel like the figures being touted for him last summer were around the £80m mark. Which was way too much in my opinion.
Total cost of ownership of Toney, including salary would have been a lot, and potentially more than what Hojlund eventually costs us. Especially given that we'll likely get some kind of transfer fee for him (selling at a loss but recouping some of the outlay) where Toney by end of contract would be another player in his 30s on a big salary.
Mateta is mad underrated imo
Meteta is easily the best option.
Not for footballing reasons though
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 32 minutes ago
Total cost of ownership of Toney, including salary would have been a lot, and potentially more than what Hojlund eventually costs us. Especially given that we'll likely get some kind of transfer fee for him (selling at a loss but recouping some of the outlay) where Toney by end of contract would be another player in his 30s on a big salary.
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Yeah but we’d have had a striker than can score goals and wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in now
I would happily take Mateta - knows what is expected in the EPL, should be hungry for success, plays in a similar system.
I think this whole early window has started the transfer juices to flow very early - a lot of teams getting business done before the club world cup etc. But whilst we want to get transfers done asap, still enough time after the club world cup is over to finalise matters.
Other clubs may be waiting before showing an interest in anyone also.
comment by Robb Cunha (U22716)
posted 27 minutes ago
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 32 minutes ago
Total cost of ownership of Toney, including salary would have been a lot, and potentially more than what Hojlund eventually costs us. Especially given that we'll likely get some kind of transfer fee for him (selling at a loss but recouping some of the outlay) where Toney by end of contract would be another player in his 30s on a big salary.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah but we’d have had a striker than can score goals and wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in now
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I wasn't giving an opinion about whether we should have signed Toney. Just pointing out that if someone is making cost comparisons, they have to factor in salary. The fact that no one in Europe went for Toney last summer probably means they would have needed to get close to the wages the Saudis were offering - and it seems that all clubs (not just United) concluded that would represented bad ROI and high risk. Especially off the back of a season defined by a long ban for betting and four league goals.
I can also see that in the first summer controlled by INEOS, off the back of diagnosing our problem as too many Casemiro/Varane type transfers (high fees, high salaries, player past their peak), it wouldn't have been very coherent to make Toney the primary move of the window.
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by Robb Cunha (U22716)
posted 27 minutes ago
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 32 minutes ago
Total cost of ownership of Toney, including salary would have been a lot, and potentially more than what Hojlund eventually costs us. Especially given that we'll likely get some kind of transfer fee for him (selling at a loss but recouping some of the outlay) where Toney by end of contract would be another player in his 30s on a big salary.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah but we’d have had a striker than can score goals and wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in now
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I wasn't giving an opinion about whether we should have signed Toney. Just pointing out that if someone is making cost comparisons, they have to factor in salary. The fact that no one in Europe went for Toney last summer probably means they would have needed to get close to the wages the Saudis were offering - and it seems that all clubs (not just United) concluded that would represented bad ROI and high risk. Especially off the back of a season defined by a long ban for betting and four league goals.
I can also see that in the first summer controlled by INEOS, off the back of diagnosing our problem as too many Casemiro/Varane type transfers (high fees, high salaries, player past their peak), it wouldn't have been very coherent to make Toney the primary move of the window.
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Yeh he was just too high risk considering the whole package. What an incredible move it was for him to SA. To secure a contract like that at his age after a couple of decent seasons in the PL is madness. I am sure that he will see his contract our over there and rightly so.
https://x.com/deadlinedaylive/status/1933819807641538733?s=46
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posted on 12/6/25
I wouldn't turn my nose up at Mateta personally. He's a right handful and in the right system and with the right players around him he could be good for us.
If we don't manage to land our top targets I wouldn't be against trying to lure Ivan Toney back from Saudi Arabia either. I think he could give us a really good 2-3 years whilst we bide our time for the next major Striker signing.
Still think it's mental we didn't go for him when he left Brentford. He'd have scored far more goals than Hojlund and he left for less money too.
posted on 12/6/25
comment by Tyranny of the majority (SE85) (U21241)
posted 1 minute ago
I wouldn't turn my nose up at Mateta personally. He's a right handful and in the right system and with the right players around him he could be good for us.
If we don't manage to land our top targets I wouldn't be against trying to lure Ivan Toney back from Saudi Arabia either. I think he could give us a really good 2-3 years whilst we bide our time for the next major Striker signing.
Still think it's mental we didn't go for him when he left Brentford. He'd have scored far more goals than Hojlund and he left for less money too.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I would take Mateta for around £40-£50m.
I would have taken Toney for about £40m last summer too. Although I feel like the figures being touted for him last summer were around the £80m mark. Which was way too much in my opinion.
posted on 12/6/25
Total cost of ownership of Toney, including salary would have been a lot, and potentially more than what Hojlund eventually costs us. Especially given that we'll likely get some kind of transfer fee for him (selling at a loss but recouping some of the outlay) where Toney by end of contract would be another player in his 30s on a big salary.
posted on 12/6/25
Mateta is mad underrated imo
posted on 12/6/25
Meteta is easily the best option.
Not for footballing reasons though
posted on 12/6/25
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 32 minutes ago
Total cost of ownership of Toney, including salary would have been a lot, and potentially more than what Hojlund eventually costs us. Especially given that we'll likely get some kind of transfer fee for him (selling at a loss but recouping some of the outlay) where Toney by end of contract would be another player in his 30s on a big salary.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah but we’d have had a striker than can score goals and wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in now
posted on 12/6/25
I would happily take Mateta - knows what is expected in the EPL, should be hungry for success, plays in a similar system.
I think this whole early window has started the transfer juices to flow very early - a lot of teams getting business done before the club world cup etc. But whilst we want to get transfers done asap, still enough time after the club world cup is over to finalise matters.
Other clubs may be waiting before showing an interest in anyone also.
posted on 12/6/25
comment by Robb Cunha (U22716)
posted 27 minutes ago
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 32 minutes ago
Total cost of ownership of Toney, including salary would have been a lot, and potentially more than what Hojlund eventually costs us. Especially given that we'll likely get some kind of transfer fee for him (selling at a loss but recouping some of the outlay) where Toney by end of contract would be another player in his 30s on a big salary.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah but we’d have had a striker than can score goals and wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in now
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I wasn't giving an opinion about whether we should have signed Toney. Just pointing out that if someone is making cost comparisons, they have to factor in salary. The fact that no one in Europe went for Toney last summer probably means they would have needed to get close to the wages the Saudis were offering - and it seems that all clubs (not just United) concluded that would represented bad ROI and high risk. Especially off the back of a season defined by a long ban for betting and four league goals.
I can also see that in the first summer controlled by INEOS, off the back of diagnosing our problem as too many Casemiro/Varane type transfers (high fees, high salaries, player past their peak), it wouldn't have been very coherent to make Toney the primary move of the window.
posted on 12/6/25
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by Robb Cunha (U22716)
posted 27 minutes ago
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 32 minutes ago
Total cost of ownership of Toney, including salary would have been a lot, and potentially more than what Hojlund eventually costs us. Especially given that we'll likely get some kind of transfer fee for him (selling at a loss but recouping some of the outlay) where Toney by end of contract would be another player in his 30s on a big salary.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah but we’d have had a striker than can score goals and wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in now
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I wasn't giving an opinion about whether we should have signed Toney. Just pointing out that if someone is making cost comparisons, they have to factor in salary. The fact that no one in Europe went for Toney last summer probably means they would have needed to get close to the wages the Saudis were offering - and it seems that all clubs (not just United) concluded that would represented bad ROI and high risk. Especially off the back of a season defined by a long ban for betting and four league goals.
I can also see that in the first summer controlled by INEOS, off the back of diagnosing our problem as too many Casemiro/Varane type transfers (high fees, high salaries, player past their peak), it wouldn't have been very coherent to make Toney the primary move of the window.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeh he was just too high risk considering the whole package. What an incredible move it was for him to SA. To secure a contract like that at his age after a couple of decent seasons in the PL is madness. I am sure that he will see his contract our over there and rightly so.
posted on 14/6/25
https://x.com/deadlinedaylive/status/1933819807641538733?s=46
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