Gary Neville Criticises Manchester United, Demands Transfers After Swansea Loss

Former Manchester United captain Gary Neville would be "stunned if there’s not a striker signed in the next 48 hours" at Old Trafford, according to Rob Dawson of the Manchester Evening News.

United have scored just three goals in the Premier League this season, with Wayne Rooney's struggles on display in their 2-1 defeat to Swansea City on Sunday, as he wasted two good chances to score.

Per Riath al-Samarrai of the Daily Mail, in his capacity as a pundit for Sky Sports, Neville added:

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They've not got enough cutting edge. They haven't got players who can beat players in the final third, they don't create enough. For me they get lulled into thinking they are playing football really well.

They dominate possession but they don't dominate matches. You dominate a match by scoring goals and playing at a high tempo. Win the game and then control possession.

They need to sort the goalkeeper situation out. That's a big problem. Manchester United need to sign a new striker, keep [David] De Gea and now that Jonny Evans has gone, ideally a centre-back too, in the next few days.

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As Dawson's report indicates, the Red Devils have been linked with moves for a number of players including Bayern Munich's Thomas Muller and Southampton's Sadio Mane, as well as high-profile transfers for La Liga stars Gareth Bale and Neymar, per the MEN's Samuel Luckhurst.

However, United have thus far failed to significantly strengthen their front line and have arguably weakened it by allowing Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao to depart.

Memphis Depay's capture was a promising start, but as Neville noted, the club desperately need to bring in another striker.

Preferably a pacey one, according to Dawson:

United are already five points behind Manchester City in the league, and while their Champions League group of PSV Eindhoven, CSKA Moscow and Wolfsburg could have been far worse, the Red Devils look less and less capable of progressing from that group with each passing game.

While their defence has typically looked far more convincing than their attack, Neville is correct in his assertion that a centre-back would also be a useful acquisition in the wake of Evans' departure.

Phil Jones and Chris Smalling are United's only senior central defenders with Tyler Blackett and Paddy McNair still young and inexperienced, and while Daley Blind has shown he can fill in there competently, there's no substitute for a natural, top-class option.

United have already missed out on Nicolas Otamendi, though, so they're unlikely to add a centre-back in this window.

The Telegraph's Liam believes United will desperately try to land a striker, though:

With so little time left and with the Red Devils so clearly in need of reinforcements, it will be incredibly difficult for them to bring in any attacking quality without paying well above a player's market value.

Unfortunately for United, they may have to bite the bullet and splash the cash, unless they're willing to face another season of simply being also-rans in the Premier League.