Manchester United and Chelsea have a £1billion transfer problem

Manchester United and Chelsea was for many years a blockbuster Premier League fixture pitting two of the best against each other.

From Champions League finals, to FA Cup showpieces and top-of-the-table clashes, the pair were regularly among Europe's best. Wednesday night sees them meet at Old Trafford in nothing more than a mid-table match-up, with United seventh and Chelsea 10th. They've lost a combined 11 league games already this term and the chances of either mounting a top-four challenge already seems far-fetched.

Erik ten Hag's side are a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. A team less than the some of its parts who take one step forward and two back on an almost weekly basis. They lack an identity and a structure and Ten Hag is battling a dissatisfied squad as he desperately seeks surer footing.

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Over at Stamford Bridge, the hope is that Mauricio Pochettino will bring stability and success under a new ownership who spent big but have little to show for it. There are shoots of optimism, as there were for Ten Hag in his first season in Manchester, but nothing more.

Chelsea and United have splurged close to £1billion on players since the start of last season but you'd be hard-pressed to find many success stories among the new recruits. They've spent wildly, not wisely.

United's best player this term has arguably been Harry Maguire. Scott McTominay is perhaps not far behind him and both were surplus to requirements in the summer. The Reds' record of arrivals is not far off a blueprint in what not to do, while Chelsea have been equally disjointed in