Manchester United's most exciting signing this season might not have even arrived yet

The start of yet another Manchester United rebuild cannot come soon enough.

Sunday's 1-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium marked United's 12th Premier League defeat of the season, leaving them 15th in the table. They have lost eight of their last 12 in the league and the prospect of relegation is being discussed again.

Currently 12 points clear of the bottom three, it would take something extraordinary for United to be reeled even closer towards the drop zone, but just the fact it is being mentioned highlights how the club's woes are worsening.

Despite it being unlikely United will fall through the trapdoor, they are facing the prospect of recording their lowest finish and points total in the Premier League era. Their eighth-placed finish last season was frowned upon, meaning this season's finish is going to attract unwanted headlines and then some.

United have spent more than £200million on six first-team signings since the beginning of last summer's transfer window, meaning questions will be asked of how a club can spend that much money on a new crop of players and get worse.

United brought in five new signings last summer, recruiting to the needs of former manager Erik ten Hag, before sacking him before the end of October. Ruben Amorim was appointed as his successor and immediately set about changing the club's identity by implementing his trademark 3-4-2-1 system.

Amorim's system, which has come under scrutiny in recent weeks amid United's struggle for form, is reliant on the wing-backs providing width and stretching the play. They are arguably the two most important positions within the whole team.

United identified that area as a major weakness ahead of the January transfer window and