Manchester United must change their reputation in the transfer market or face the consequences

Manchester United's summer transfer window of 2022 could well become a case study in years to come of the difficulties of assessing value in the modern game.

After splashing out a record £225million on six new players, the perception within football is that the club overpaid for the players they signed.

Landing Christian Eriksen on a free transfer and Tyrell Malacia for just £13million plus add-ons was impressive business, but they had to cough up a potential £56million for Lisandro Martinez, well above their opening offer for the Argentine.

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The final days of the window were particularly tricky for United. The defeats to Brighton and Brentford made new arrivals all the more pressing and Real Madrid and Ajax were both delighted to bring in up to £70million for Casemiro and £85.5million for Antony.

The latter is a 30-year-old defensive midfielder whose value is only going to depreciate at Old Trafford, while Antony has plenty of potential, but becomes the most expensive Eredivisie export ever on the back of just two good seasons at Ajax.

United will hope both prove to be worth the outlay and it has to be said that Ten Hag's eye for a player looks promising so far. Martinez, Malacia and Eriksen have all had very good starts to their careers at the club.

Casemiro has looked sluggish, however, and needs more game time before he can oust Scott McTominay, while Antony has drifted in and out of games despite some memorable moments.

But if the recruitment drive helps United back into the top four and a return to the Champions League, will the risk of overspending on players that other clubs would have valued at far less have been considered worth it?