Manchester City are all but mathematically the new Premier League champions.
15 points clear at the summit of the English top flight, their city rivals United are their nearest challengers (that’s if you can even describe any other team as ‘challengers’ any more).
Having made the odd comment in recent weeks about City’s spending, some reports had suggested Jose Mourinho might be pushing to make the odd high-profile signing for United in the January window. This, however, does not appear to be the case.
Speaking at his press conference ahead of United’s final game of 2017, at home to Southampton, Mourinho appeared to rule out the prospect of any new arrivals at Old Trafford.
Directly asked if they would buy in January, Mourinho said: “I don’t think so. I don’t think (so).”
While that might appear relatively clear cut, you can sure as shit bet that some United fans somewhere will now be convincing themselves that this is merely a smokescreen for a mid-season splurge for Antoine Griezmann or Mesut Özil or Paulo Dybala.
While United’s hopes of ending their post-Ferguson wait for a league title appear as good as over, they remain in the Champions League, where they will take on Sevilla in the last 16 in February. Their FA Cup campaign also begins in the new year. They will host Derby County in the third round on January 5.
