MANCHESTER, UK — As Manchester United prepare for a defining summer transfer window, the club has been served a stark £106 million warning: avoid the “World Cup trap.”
With legend Casemiro officially confirming his departure at the end of the 2025/26 campaign, United’s priority is crystal clear. However, with the 2026 World Cup looming in North America, the recruitment team led by Dan Ashworth faces its toughest test yet: finding a successor without falling victim to hyper-inflated valuations.
The ‘Enzo Fernandez’ Cautionary Tale
United’s hierarchy is being urged to look at Chelsea’s 2023 pursuit of Enzo Fernandez as a blueprint of what not to do. Following a stellar Qatar 2022, Chelsea paid a British record £106.8m for a player who later admitted he struggled to cope with the Premier League’s intensity.
“The pace of the Premier League isn’t played anywhere else in the world,” Fernandez recently reflected. “In the first year, I felt like I just couldn’t keep up.”
While Fernandez has since found his feet, United sitting in a crucial rebuilding phase under the INEOS era—do not have the luxury of a “transition year.” Whoever replaces Casemiro must hit the ground running from Day 1 of the 2026/27 season.
Avoiding the ‘United Tax’ 2.0
To their credit, United’s recent recruitment has shown signs of maturity. The signings of Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha proved the club can find Premier League-proven value. But the World Cup is a different beast; it’s where “United Tax” is replaced by “World Cup Tax.”
The Strategic Plan:
- Stick to Long-Term Targets: United must prioritize players scouted over 12-18 months, not 3-4 weeks in July.
- Premier League Readiness: Prioritizing physical profiles that can handle the English game immediately.
- Financial Discipline: Refusing to meet release clauses triggered by short-term tournament hype.
As the world’s elite head to the United States this summer, United’s biggest signing might not be the player who scores the winning goal in the final, but the one who has consistently delivered for club and country over the long haul.
Filepe Junior is a football writer tracking La Liga transfers, covering major signings, squad planning, and player movements across Spanish clubs.
