Erik ten Hag talks to the squad during training

In his first summer at the helm of the club, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made quite a splash in the player recruitment market. They were the faces that would define his tenure, and they were signed for a combined total of £145 million. Harry Maguire, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, and Daniel James were the players who were signed.

After three years, Solskjaer has been fired, James has left for Leeds before joining Fulham, Wan-Bissaka is currently up for sale at Old Trafford, and Maguire has confirmed that he was not good enough to be known as the world's most expensive defender. All of these events have occurred since Solskjaer was fired. It was not the player's fault that Leicester received the fee that they did for Maguire, but the fact that it has followed him around is unavoidable.

In the summer of 2019, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's first three signings as permanent manager appeared to be profitable business moves. However, with the benefit of hindsight, the majority of supporters would suggest that this assertion is now laughable. This season, Erik ten Hag appears to be demoting his club captain, Harry Maguire, who was a limited winger, a signing that was a failure in Wan-Bissaka, and one that has resulted in Maguire's current position as a fourth-choice center back.

During the summer, Wan-Bissaka was informed that he had the option of leaving the club. It is difficult to imagine that Manchester United will recoup the majority of the £50 million fee that he commanded, and it is telling that even Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wanted to sign Kieran Trippier in the final months of his premiership season.

It is obvious that the money that was invested in Solskjaer's first signings in 2019 could have been better spent, and any new manager's first summer transfer window is their most important, as it either lays the foundation for success or ultimately for failure.

The first window of opportunity for a manager is an opportunity to shape the team into their vision and sign players whose philosophies are compatible with their own. This summer, Ten Hag would have been aware of the fact that in an industry known for its impatience, it can be the factor that makes or breaks a manager's reign.

Are you satisfied with the way United handles its passenger transfers? In this extensive poll, both here and below, we want to hear your thoughts on the first part of the season.

Ten Hag inherited a team that lacked self-assurance, had just finished with the fewest points in the Premier League in the club's history, and placed a greater emphasis than is typically the case on ensuring that the appropriate personnel were signed.

Old Trafford welcomed Tyrell Malacia, Lisandro Martinez, Christian Eriksen, Antony, Casemiro, and Martin Dubravka this summer as a result of the club making six new signings during the summer transfer window. As a result, Manchester United spent over a total of £200 million on these new arrivals in the transfer market.

It has been two months since the transfer window closed, and although definitive judgments should only be made after the completion of an entire season's worth of play, it appears that the transactions that Ten Hag made during his first summer as general manager were successful, and the money was invested wisely.

Even though the right signings were finally made at the end of the summer, that does not mean that the season was not a circus. United appeared to be acting foolishly when they pursued Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong, but the club's embarrassing interest in Marko Arnautovic was the absolute low point of the summer.

The vast majority of the players that United signed in the summer were recommended by Ten Hag, and football director John Murtough, who is responsible for first-team recruitment, merely completed the deals. This is obviously a dangerous strategy, as there is no framework in place to ensure that recruitment is aligned with the club's long-term vision.

If the season had continued in the same manner as it started against Brighton and Brentford, Ten Hag could have been fired as early as late September, and United would have been stuck with players that Ten Hag's replacement might not have wanted, for example. If the season had continued as it started against Brighton and Brentford, the season would have begun.

It is obvious why clubs need to have continuity in their recruitment, as players tend to outlast the managers that sign them. The most successful clubs give the manager some degree of power, but not to the extent that Ten Hag was given this summer.

Nevertheless, it is to Murtough's advantage that the signings that Ten Hag made this summer are producing, as a result of which he has been shielded from the spotlight and scrutiny. It appears that Murtough made the best decision possible when he appointed the Dutchman, which was his most consequential choice to date.

It was a risk to put so much emphasis on Ten Hag as the transfer strategy for the summer, but the United manager's signings have helped improve the team, and some of them have become indispensable, such as Lisandro Martinez and Christian Eriksen, who are arguably the best signings of the summer. This strategy was a gamble.

Casemiro has also been a world-class addition; he is the defensive midfielder that was desperately needed, and Antony clearly has a bright future; however, Martinez and Eriksen have played more games, and it is easy to see why Ten Hag rates them so highly. Casemiro has also been a world-class addition; he is the defensive midfielder that was desperately needed.

However, it seems like that status has been reserved for just Martinez and Eriksen so far, who are currently competing for the club's Player of the Season award. Although it is possible to suggest that the Brazilian pair are undroppable, and there would obviously be merit in that, but it feels like that status has been reserved for just Martinez and Eriksen so far.

United took a risk with their recruitment strategy over the summer, but their new signings have helped them get off to an outstanding start.

It already gives the impression that people will look back on it as a more successful window than summer 2019 did.

Are you satisfied with the way United handles its passenger transfers? In this extensive poll, both here and below, we want to hear your thoughts on the first part of the season.