Bernardo Silva and Fred show Manchester United what they need in the transfer market

Marcel Sabitzer only joined Manchester United because of an injury to Christian Eriksen, but even with the latter back in action it feels like the Bayern Munich loanee will be a big miss for the final four games of this season.

Sabitzer’s season is over after sustaining a knee injury and his absence from the squad revealed the paucity of options in the middle for Erik ten Hag against Wolves. With Scott McTominay also out, Fred was the only midfielder available from the bench.

The 30-year-old is a reliable option, but is a class below the starting duo of Casemiro and Eriksen. Only Bruno Fernandes, David de Gea and Marcus Rashford have played more games than Fred’s 52 this season, but only 21 of those have been starts.

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McTominay is due back soon and will play a part in the final three Premier League games of the season and the FA Cup final against Manchester City, but he is another who is a squad player at best. There is a drop in quality that is probably too big when he replaces Casemiro.

There’s another United midfielder on the injury list still. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took the attention in the directors’ box on Saturday, but Donny van de Beek was also present as he recovers from a serious knee injury. The Dutchman is the forgotten piece of the puzzle in this midfield, but he’s never really taken his chances and could leave this summer.

The reality is that if any of the midfield three of Casemiro, Eriksen and Fernandes were unavailable, it would cause Ten Hag a problem. Fred could come in, but his greatest attribute is probably his energy rather than his quality on the ball.

It’s also no longer just a case of one of that trio being