The Red Devils continue to move from one disaster to another, seemingly without the ability to pull themselves out of the downward spiral.
Sir Jim was meant to usher in new era of success
When Sir Jim Ratcliffe took over the management of football affairs from the Glazer family, it was supposed to usher in a new era of success and positivity, though frankly, the last couple of years have been anything but.
The pursuit of Dan Ashworth, only to sack him after only a few months in the sporting director role, was followed by the decision to offer Erik ten Hag a new contract, only to also sack him a couple of months later, too.
Such decisions have been amongst the worst, but are only the tip of the iceberg.
Mass redundancies, ticket price rises and more have done such damage to the club's reputation that it's difficult to see things changing anytime soon.
A last-minute win over Burnley has momentarily lifted the gloom that has been enveloping Old Trafford, but it remains to be seen if the fight shown in that game is another temporary fix or the first foot on the ladder back to respectability.
Welbeck targeted by Man Utd
United are one of the most storied names in football history, and whether you're a supporter of the Red Devils or not, to see how far they've fallen is a travesty for both English and world football.
Clearly, it wasn't one single decision that sent United tumbling towards the abyss; however, another recent one made by the club hierarchy is a more accurate guide as to where an awful lot of the problems - and blame - lie.
According to recent reports, former ace Danny Welbeck was being targeted as a backup striker this summer.
With the greatest of respect to the 34-year-old, even if he did top-score in the Premier League for Brighton last season - 10 goals and four assists - he is no longer what might be termed 'United class.'
And yet it's understood that he was being considered for a two-year contract offer by Omar Berrada and Jason Wilcox - sensibly vetoed by Sir Jim.
One-in-four goals to games ratio
A one-plus-one deal might have been more agreeable to the club, but it didn't materialise, though the fact that it was even being considered should again ring the alarm bells at the 'Theatre of Dreams'.
Welbeck has scored 37 goals in all competitions over the past five seasons. During that time, he has played 166 games, which gives him a goals-to-games ratio of roughly one-in-four-and-a-half.
Even if one takes the view that such a return isn't that bad, then there's a cogent argument to have persisted with Rasmus Hojlund, for example.
The Dane, who has recently put pen to paper on a loan deal with Napoli, scored 10 in all competitions in 52 games last season, though only 38 of those were as a starter.
In practice, that's roughly the same return as Welbeck, who is 12 years Hojlund's senior and who therefore has much less scope to improve and develop.
Welbeck is good... but not United class
For a player who's often been known as good in the air, the Brighton man's loss of 179 duels from 338 attempted across 2023/24 and 2024/24 in the Premier League tells a completely different story.
Winning duels 43.6% of the time in 2024/25, as well as a shot conversion rate of just 16.7% (including blocks), whilst also factoring in that he's managed only 113 shots on target in the five previous seasons across competitions, also speaks of a striker whose talent is on the wane.
That's not to say that Welbeck won't do a job as a professional for some while yet, but he just shouldn't be anywhere close to being considered by a supposedly 'up and coming' and forward-looking Manchester United side.
With the board trying to convince the fan base that another Premier League title by 2028 is within reach, principally because of the strategic decisions that they'll be making on and off the pitch, how does one square that with the knowledge that the club came close to hiring an ex-player whose best days were arguably when he was at Arsenal eight to nine years ago?
Time for Sesko and Mbeumo to light up Old Trafford
It's another PR disaster that United can well do without, and it would be no surprise whatsoever if the matter was raised at a future fans forum.
In the meantime, the likes of Benjamin Sesko and Bryan Mbeumo will be tasked with firing the Red Devils to glory.
If one or either can hit their sweet spot over the course of the next month or two, thoughts of re-signing Welbeck will be consigned to the history books.
