David de Gea with Kylian Mbappe at Old Trafford, February 2019.

When Manchester United announced in the summer of 2017 that they had re-signed Cristiano Ronaldo, it sent shockwaves across the Premier League. The phrase "BACK HOME" was printed across the back page of the Manchester Evening News in capital letters, and the paper itself had the air of being an edition worthy of being kept as a memento by fans.

Despite the fact that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner is entering the latter stages of his career, it was a historic deal, and it sent reverberations all around the Premier League. In spite of the fact that Ronaldo's team lacked confidence and coherence, the Portuguese forward was still the best bet for scoring goals, and he didn't disappoint with an excellent total of 24 during the previous campaign. After returning home, Ronaldo demonstrated that he had done his part.

The news that Ronaldo had re-signed with Manchester United was arguably the most significant development of the summer, and there is no question that he was the "marquee" arrival at Old Trafford, along with the signings of Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho for the club.

On paper, those three signings were outstanding, but in reality, Varane was regularly sidelined with injuries, and Sancho was regularly unimpressive, so Ronaldo was the only one of the three who turned out to be a successful acquisition. Although United should be in a position to make marquee signings every summer, Ronaldo was the club's first such signing since Paul Pogba joined for £89 million in 2016, and he was also getting toward the end of his career at the time of the signing.

Sources told the MEN that the Glazers believed that a Ronaldo homecoming would get them back onside with supporters following the European Super League debacle, but that belief was naive and indicative of how out of touch they are with fan sentiment. Ronaldo's return would have been a huge mistake for the Glazers.

The discontent with the Glazers did not go away during the previous summer, and it has recently reached a boiling point once more with the American family. In August, approximately 10,000 fans demonstrated against the Glazers' ownership of the team. After the worst season in decades, Ronaldo stated that it was his desire to leave the club in the summer, and this is ultimately a consequence of the Glazers' gross mismanagement of the club. Ronaldo's desire to leave the club in the summer was expressed after the worst season in decades.

If the Glazers were responsible stewards of the club, it would routinely be in contention for major trophies, its roster would be of world-class caliber, and Cristiano Ronaldo would have no desire to leave. In the month of January, United would also be in a position to inquire about Kylian Mbappe's availability.

There have been rumors circulating since Wednesday that Mbappe 'wants' to leave his current club, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), during the winter transfer window because his relationship with the French club is 'completely broken.' Should he decide to leave, the forward reportedly won't be able to join Real Madrid even if they try to sign him. [Citation needed]

Mbappe was indeed close to leaving Paris in the summer, there is often no smoke without fire, and the biggest teams in Europe would have taken notice, despite the fact that PSG claims he is not for sale. PSG responded to the reports with a firm rebuttal, but Mbappe was indeed close to leaving Paris in the summer.

Stranger things have happened in football, especially if the player's relationship in Paris is 'completely broken,' as was claimed. Mbappe signed a new contract with PSG in the summer, and that obviously makes any potential deal difficult and very, very expensive. However, stranger things have happened in football.

Despite the fact that the reports should be taken with a grain of salt, executives in boardrooms all over Europe will be sending out enquiries to determine whether or not Mbappe might actually be available in January or in the summer, given the claims that the situation is uncertain.

Although United's football director John Murtough, who is in charge of first-team recruitment, should be doing the same, it appears highly unlikely that he will do so because the club is simply not in a position to be an appealing proposition to a player like Mbappe.

Even though Ronaldo was 36 years old and already had a history with the club, he could have been considered a marquee signing for the team. It is unacceptable that United are no longer in the running for signing players of Mbappe's caliber when opportunities to do so present themselves, and this situation has persisted for some time.

In an alternate reality, the Glazer family sold the club over the summer, and Manchester United is now plotting to sign a "unhappy" Mbappe in order to get them back to the level of success that their fans are accustomed to seeing. But the fact of the matter is that Mbappe would not be interested in moving to Old Trafford at this point in his career.

United are currently competing in the Europa League, and it may be years before they are in a position to challenge Manchester City for the Premier League title. This is because the Glazer family rarely makes strategic decisions that are successful. Erik ten Hag now has a difficult task ahead of him.

Even though it seems likely that Mbappe will remain at PSG, it is a sad indictment of how far the standards at United have fallen under the Glazers that the possibility of him signing for the club almost feels like a joke and is something that is completely unrealistic. This is a sad indictment of how far the standards at United have fallen.

A club of Manchester United's caliber should not be playing at that level.