This season was supposed to be Manchester United's return to the big time. After seemingly shoring up their defensive set-up with Harry Maguire and bringing in Welsh speedster Daniel James, the Red Devils were poised to take the Premier League by storm in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's first full season in charge.
Despite the wave of optimism that followed their summer signings, Manchester United currently find themselves in 5th-place, four points away from 5th-placed Chelsea.
Their main goal going into the second half of the season is most certainly to secure a top four finish, but to do that, Ole will have to bolster his squad once more.
At the moment, Manchester United would benefit from signing a new creative midfielder, a striker and a winger, here's a look at some of the players they could sign to fill those roles:
Midfielder
Manchester United have struggled to create quality goalscoring opportunities this season, a fact which, to a large extent is responsible for their inconsistent performances throughout the course of the 2019/20 Premier League campaign.
United were looking to acquire the services of Sporting CP's resident midfield maestro, Bruno Fernandes last season in a bid to boost their attacking potential but an agreement could not be reached for the Portugal international.
Reports suggest that they could make another move for Fernandes in January considering his impressive performances in the Liga Nos. The 25-year-old has made 12 goal and assist contributions for Sporting in 13 appearances - an impressive tally for a midfield player.
United are also said to be considering a move for Tottenham's Christian Eriksen who is reportedly keen on leaving Spurs.
While Fernandes is in fine form in the Liga Nos, Eriksen would be the best midfielder for United to sign.
The Danish virtuoso is keen on leaving Spurs, which would make a potential transfer go relatively smoothly for United, plus, he boasts a wealth of Premier League experience having plied his trade in the Premier League for six years.
Within those six years, Eriksen has established himself as one of the best midfielders to have ever graced the English top-flight.
Should Manchester United manage to sign Eriksen, then their chances of making it into the top four will increase exponentially.
Striker
Marcus Rashford has been deployed as Manchester United's main striker throughout the course of the season.
Having managed to score 12 goals in 20 games for United, a case could be made for why Rashford deserves to remain as United's number 9, however, considering the fact that only eight of his goals have come from open play, United would be wise to make a move for a striker who can guarantee a steady stream of goals.
Having already failed to sign Erling Haaland from Salzburg, Manchester United could reportedly turn their attention towards Everton's Dominic Calvert-Lewin who has scored eight goals in 13 league starts for the Toffees - a decent tally, but nothing extraordinary.
United also have Juventus' Paulo Dybala under their radar. The Red Devils have been linked with a move for Dybala for a while now following his impressive performances in the Champions League and the Serie A.
He'd be the best forward that United can realistically sign right now due to his pedigree and ability.
Winger
From the looks of things, Manchester United have just one winger on their radar - the highly sought-after Jadon Sancho.
Sancho has attracted the interest of a host of clubs including United's Premier League rivals Chelsea who view him as a replacement for Willian.
Sancho would introduce a new dynamic to United's attack as he boasts blistering pace, mesmerising dribbling ability and he knows how to find the back of the net on a consistent basis.
