Manchester United are trying to build the ultimate team, not put together a Harlem Globetrotters-type collection of showy individuals, director of football Jason Wilcox has declared.
The most famous example of that kind of recruitment strategy in football saw Real Madrid sign Luís Figo, Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo Nazário and David Beckham in four successive summers from 2000 to 2003, known as the Galácticos era. Six years later, Los Blancos embarked upon Galácticos 2.0 by breaking the transfer world record twice in one summer to sign Kaká and Cristiano Ronaldo.
More recently, Paris Saint-Germain assembled a forward line of Neymar, Kylian Mbappé and Lionel Messi that was mind-blowing on paper but underwhelmed on the pitch. It was only after all three superstars had left, and a new focus on the collective was implemented by manager Luis Enrique, that PSG finally delivered in the Champions League for the first time.
Manchester United have failed in the past to get the best out of superstar signings like Ángel Di María, Paul Pogba and Jadon Sancho, with Wilcox now explaining that assessing a transfer target’s mindset and character—knowing if they are going to be a good fit—is driving recruitment.
“The most important thing is that, whenever we bring in a player, they have to want to improve and they have to be a team player, and understand what it means to be part of a successful team,” Wilcox, who is now leading sporting operations, told the club’s podcast.
“It is not about putting the Harlem Globetrotters together. If I look at successful Man Utd teams, there were very functional players that would die for the badge and there were some mavericks. When you hear anybody talk about [Eric] Cantona, he was an ultimate professional.”
Wilcox also noted that it is a “good sign” to see players arriving at Carrington an hour or more before they are expected to report, highlighting the culture that is developing.
“What we have got to try to do is, whether we are winning or losing, we can’t have the pendulum shifting so much where it affects the mood in Carrington. If anyone comes into Carrington, actually, the first thing they say when they go away is ‘it’s nothing like it appears from the outside.’”
