Manchester United's Transfer Strategy: Carrick Seeks More Signings

Michael Carrick has made it clear: Manchester United are not done yet.

With the transfer window ticking towards its September 1 deadline, the United head coach insists the club both "want" and "need" more business before he leads the team into his first full season in charge at Old Trafford.

Carrick pleased – but pushing for more

United moved quickly in midfield after Casemiro’s departure, spending around £85m to bring in Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans, while Karl Darlow arrived on a free from Leeds to provide competition behind new No 1 Senne Lammens.

Youngsters Tynan Thompson, Kit Margetson and Cristian Orozco have also joined, though they are viewed as longer-term projects rather than immediate first‑team fixtures.

Carrick likes what he’s seen so far.

"We're delighted with the players we've brought in, first and foremost," he told Sky Sports News. "We've improved the group. We've improved the squad in different ways. Balance, quality and the direction we want to go in.

"So the players that we've brought in, I think we've done really good business and we've got some top, top, top players. So we're delighted with that. We always want to improve.

"We want more, we need more. We keep looking forward to how we can do that. So that never stops. We're conscious of that and we've got to keep pushing."

The message is blunt. United feel stronger, but not strong enough.

Rashford returns to the fold

Amid the transfer manoeuvres, one of the most significant additions to Carrick’s squad has come from within. Marcus Rashford is back.

The England forward spent last season on loan at Barcelona, who chose not to activate a £26m buy option, sending him back to Old Trafford and into a very different United dressing room from the one he left.

Rashford is in line to pull on a United shirt for the first time since December 2024 this weekend in a friendly against Ruben Amorim’s AC Milan. There is extra spice there: Rashford previously fell out with Amorim before his first loan move away to Aston Villa.

Carrick, once a teammate of Rashford, has tried to strip away the noise around the reunion.

"We're really calm [about bringing Rashford back in]," he said. "We just treat it like anybody else coming into the group. There's obviously this slight twist that he knows the club as well as anybody and that's a real positive.

"He's been here all his career, all his life before the last eight months or so to understand what it means. So that side of things is natural. That's a given. I know we've got history, but I've got history with a number of other players as well, so that doesn't make that a unique situation at all.

"We treat him exactly like any other player, and bring him into the group and carry on as normal.

"He brings a group of things that we haven't got and we want to get that balance with every individual player and Marcus has come back. He's in good form and he's been good to have around this week."

For Carrick, Rashford is not just a returning star. He is also a tactical solution.

Left-back hunt and midfield question

United’s recruitment team are still working on two key areas: left-back and, possibly, another central midfielder.

The club have explored a move for Lewis Hall, but Newcastle have made it clear he is not for sale. That has pushed United to assess other options, including Fulham’s Antonee Robinson, as they look for an attacking left-back who fits Carrick’s aggressive, front-foot approach.

Harry Amass has been involved in pre-season, yet he is expected to depart before the end of the window, underlining the need for a senior option on that flank.

In midfield, United’s long-standing admiration for Arsenal youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly has not gone away. His ability to operate both at left-back and in the middle of the pitch makes him an intriguing fit for a squad that needs flexibility as much as it needs depth.

Whether United move for him now is still unclear. Inside the club, it has not been ruled out that they could end the window without signing a third central midfielder, leaning instead on Tielemans and Santos to reshape the core of Carrick’s side.

Forward plans shaped by Rashford

One area where United look unlikely to spend is up front. Rashford’s return has changed the picture, giving Carrick a proven attacker who can lead the line or drift from the left, and easing the urgency for another striker in a market short on value.

For all the noise around potential deals, the pattern is emerging. A reshaped midfield, a battle to secure the right left-back, and a returning forward who could yet redefine United’s season.

The window is still open. The pressure is rising. Now it’s up to United to match Carrick’s words with the final pieces of a squad he insists is only part-built.