The start of the 2021/22 Premier League season is now a little over two weeks away and from a Manchester United perspective, the excitement is certainly building.
After finishing second in the table last season and 12 points behind cross-city rivals Manchester City, United always knew that they would have to loosen the purse strings this summer in the transfer market to try and bridge the gap to Pep Guardiola's side, ahead of launching a fresh title charge.
So far, United have done done exactly that, landing Borussia Dortmund and England winger Jadon Sancho in a huge £73m deal, finally bringing an end to their pursuit of both him and their search for a new winger.
Sancho's arrival at Old Trafford is a huge statement of intent from the United hierarchy as it shows that they mean business and have plans to compete for English football's ultimate prize this season.
In a time where the world has been starved of normality and football has experienced financial challenges like never before, United could have been forgiven for calling time on their summer recruitment drive after Sancho's arrival. After all, spending £73million on a player when some clubs have struggled just to pay the wages of the players currently on their books highlights just how privileged a position the Old Trafford outfit finds itself in.
That financial privilege has now been proven by their attempts to lure Real Madrid and France centre-back Raphael Varane to Old Trafford.
As well as looking to sign a winger this summer, United are desperate to bolster their central-defensive options and their pursuit of Varane, 28, is most certainly heading in the right direction.
As revealed by the Manchester Evening News, United have agreed personal terms with the defender and he is already making arrangements ahead of making the trip to Manchester.
Should all go to plan and United successfully land Varane, it would prove to be an excellent outcome for all parties involved in one way or another. That is because, as highlighted above, United are desperate to strengthen their defensive options this summer, while Madrid are looking to offload him and are in desperate need of funds to combat the losses they have made as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Despite those heavy financial losses, Madrid still continue to be linked with a number of big-name superstars, including Paris Saint-Germain starlet Kylian Mbappe.
The France striker, who failed to score during Euro 2020 in a forgettable tournament for the French, has supposedly informed PSG that he does not wish to extend his contract beyond next summer, meaning he will be available on a free transfer, allowing one very fortunate club the chance to land one of the game's hottest properties without forking out a transfer fee.
Unsurprisingly, a whole host of European giants have been linked with Mbappe's signature in one way or another, but the challenge of signing him is going to be massive even if not transfer fee were involved, with wages, promises and ambitions of the club in question likely to be crucial in trying to sell a pitch to the Frenchman.
Although there have been murmurs of him being linked with the likes of Chelsea, City and United, it is Liverpool that have been most consistently linked with his signature, with their supporters having developed something of an obsession for the talented 22-year-old.
According to French newspaper L'Equipe, as cited by Sports Joe, Liverpool chief Jurgen Klopp has spent time in the past trying to convince Mbappe to make the move to Anfield. However, at the time, Liverpool could not compete with PSG in a financial sense, meaning the Ligue 1 side won the race for the former Monaco star.
Should Mbappe be available on a free next summer, Liverpool may reignite their interest in the forward again, especially as it is possible Klopp may look to bolster his attacking options.
However, Varane's impending move to Old Trafford could have an almighty say in that, with Madrid poised to pocket a tidy windfall, understood to be around £50m.
That could be used to fund Mbappe's wages among other things, meaning Real could now move back into pole position to land the PSG ace.
In truth, the likelihood of Mbappe sealing a switch to Anfield has always seemed slim, and the realistic expectation has always been that the striker would make a move to Spain once he moves on from his spell in the French capital.
Whilst it always appeared hard to imagine, Liverpool's dreams of signing one of football's biggest superstars could now be over once and for all thanks to United finally laying their hands on a dream target of their own.
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