No Premier League player created more chances than him, but that was the case last season and the season before too. No United player has played more than his 4,927 minutes in all competitions, and his availability and indefatigability has been near-constant since his arrival.

A fee well over $100 million for a player whose peak years are ahead of him is excellent value, but the vacuum it would create would do untold damage.

Masterstroke or Madness?Brutal Choices After a Brutal SeasonThere was a time when selling Bruno Fernandes would have been sacrilegious. The only