Manchester United must figure succession plan in key position soon or lose first choice star for nothing

Dear Manchester United fans, hold onto your hats - or goalkeeper gloves - as the club recently rebuffed Arsenal’s world record goalkeeper fee of £100,000 for United and Lionesses shot-stopper, Mary Earps.

After the Women's World Cup shirt fiasco with Nike, it's ironic that you could only get an Earps’ club jersey - which may well be out of date in the next 12 months. Yes, for now, the 30-year-old has one year left on her contract with United but that hasn’t deterred Jonas Eidevall. Does anyone else feel a sense of Deja Vu?

We’ve seen this happen before. In January 2023 the Gunners made substantial offers for Alessia Russo that United swept under the rug, at least for a few months. But eventually the inevitable happened and Russo jumped ship, is it only a matter of time before Earps follows suit?

According to sources, it is the club's priority to keep Earps at Leigh Sports Village, and so it should be. United shambolically failed to muster the go-ahead to keep Russo, Ona Batlle and co. in the summer, and look at how that will hurt them in this Champions League year. So, manager Marc Skinner cannot afford to let their number 27, the FIFA Best Goalkeeper, escape their grasp.

Not only does the 'keeper come with iron-clad focus and an uncanny ability to deny chances on goal (did anyone see the penalty save at the Women's World Cup final?), but she's also a huge character. Rich in charisma, a level head and an uncanny ability to organise her back line. She is the rock of that young United team.

It’s a hard one because no matter what the club does, they're in a catch-22. Benching Earps to give backup keepers Sophie Baggerly and Safia Middleton-Patel a run out will undoubtedly disrupt Earps’ form, plus, she’s here to play.