A few weeks ago a world-class centre forward looked like being top of Manchester United's shopping list for the summer of 2022, but things can change quickly in football.
The elite clubs like to plan windows well in advance and inside United there will already be discussions going on over potential targets for next year and which positions need prioritising.
The deal to keep Edinson Cavani for an extra year took the pressure off needing to sign a striker this year, but it looked to have just kicked the can down the road. Now we've seen Mason Greenwood score in each of United's first three games of the season and Cristiano Ronaldo complete his fairy tale return.
If Cavani leaves at the end of this season as expected then Ronaldo will still have another year of his contract left to run and Greenwood's development this season has been eye-catching. The teenager has bulked up over the summer and he looks more ready to play as a striker now than he did last season.
So just how desperately will United need a striker next year? They will obviously be in the running to sign Erling Haaland, but his release clause makes it a beauty parade rather than a bidding war. The chances of signing Haaland rest on what happens this season and what his other suitors are doing.
If the Norwegian opts to move somewhere else it wouldn't necessarily be imperative that United sign a Plan B. Instead, central midfield now looks more pressing than centre forward.
It was already clear that defensive midfield was an area United needed to strengthen in, especially if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer does toy with using a 4-3-3 at times this season. The injury to Scott McTominay has only further exposed the limitations in that area of the pitch.
Fred and McTominay have formed a reliable partnership but neither fit the mould for playing a defensive midfield role on their own and both are a notch below what United would expect from a midfielder in terms of passing ability, even if they have significant strengths in other areas.
The absence of McTominay gave Nemanja Matic a chance at Southampton but the Serb was poor and at 33 it seems his best days are behind him. Without the presence of McTominay it's been a struggle for Fred as well, at Southampton and against Wolves when he was partnered by Paul Pogba.
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The decision to drop Pogba deeper didn't really work at Molineux. His best contributions for United are coming in a more attacking role and as much as the midfield began the game against Wolves with the handbrake off, Pogba's role became a deeper one as Fred struggled.
At the moment there are just too many questions around the United midfield to know exactly what is required. Pogba's future is still uncertain with his contract expiring next summer and what happens with Donny van de Beek will also affect transfer plans.
There was an expectation from Van de Beek's camp that he would get more game time this season, having had longer to adapt to the Premier League and the environment changing after a first season played in unprecedented circumstances. But he's been an unused substitute in all three Premier League games and the frustration at his situation must be building.
It's a little perplexing Van de Beek hasn't had a chance, with Solskjaer saying before the Wolves game that he was "definitely" able to play in a deeper two-man midfield, but he appears to be well down on the list of options as far as the manager is concerned.
Even with Pogba and Van de Beek in the squad United look short of quality in central midfield. If one or both of them leave then there is a shortage of numbers as well.
Haaland might well remain an obvious target for 2022, but right now the midfield looks a more important area of United to strengthen in.
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