Manchester United are nearing the perfect squad size in the transfer market

Another incentive for Manchester United to prioritise sales over the next eight days is their squad size.

The club website lists 32 players in the first team section. It is not as obese as Chelsea's squad but there is some flab to cut off.

There are caveats. Dan Gore, last in a matchday squad in December and recovering from a shoulder injury following an unfulfilling loan at Port Vale, is listed as a first team squad member.

Harry Amass, Toby Collyer and Ethan Wheatley were added earlier this month and the trio all started for the Under-21s in their captivating comeback at Barnsley in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday night.

Facundo Pellistri is going and Hannibal Mejbri probably will go. In the best-case scenario that Scott McTominay and Jadon Sancho are also among the outgoings with Manuel Ugarte the incoming, then United would have a healthy squad size of 28.

READ MORE: United open to workaround with Ugarte deal

READ MORE: United prepared to sell five more players before deadline

Clubs with European competition commitments to factor into their calendars need 25-man squads, minimum. United tend to favour that number and make allowances for academy breakthroughs. Wheatley became academy debutant 250 in April and Collyer was the 251st. Amass should be the 252nd.

In 2016-17, United eventually settled on a 28-man squad (with the re-addition of Bastian Schweinsteiger) as they won the Europa League. The drawback was there was only one rookie bidding to breakthrough in Axel Tuanzebe, so Morgan Schneiderlin and Memphis Depay knocked on Jose Mourinho's door asking to leave long before the winter transfer window opened.

Both left after only 18 months at United and so did Schweinsteiger two months later. Players started to drop like