Manchester United’s problems last season started at the top of the pitch. The Old Trafford outfit scored just 44 goals in 38 Premier League outings with Ruben Amorim’s team one of the easiest to play against in the top division of English soccer. It’s therefore unsurprising that so much of United’s early summer transfer business has focused on the attack.

Matheus Cunha has arrived from Wolves while the signing of Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford was completed following protracted negotiations with the London club. These two additions will make a difference, but Amorim still requires a new number nine to lead the forward line into the 2025/26 campaign.

Other Premier League teams have been active in the summer transfer window. Arsenal is expected to complete the signing of Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting CP in the coming days with Liverpool leading the pursuit of Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike. This will clear two high-quality attackers off the board for Manchester United to target.

Chelsea has also added Liam Delap, Jamie Gittens and Joao Pedro to its attack which could could create an opportunity for United to move for a striker seemingly being squeezed out at Stamford Bridge. Indeed, Nicolas Jackson has been knocked down the pecking order and Manchester United has been linked.

Jackson has been a frustrating figure for Chelsea. Supporters bemoan the Senegalese international’s perceived wastefulness in front of goal, yet Jackson has still registered 24 goals in two seasons in the Premier League. That number almost certainly would have been higher had it not been for injury troubles.

Amorim needs a mobile centre forward capable of attacking open space at speed and offering a threat in quick transition. This is where the addition of Jackson would make sense for a Manchester United team that desperately needs more dynamism in the final third of the pitch. The 24-year-old would bring that.

The problem for Manchester United could be that Chelsea reportedly wants a transfer fee of at least $100m for Jackson despite the Senegalese international no longer Enzo Maresca’s first-choice centre forward after the addition of Delap and Pedro. This would make Jackson United’s most expensive signing of the summer window.

However, United’s chance of a strong 2025/26 season will be impacted if the club doesn’t add a new striker to its squad. Rasmus Hojlund isn’t good enough for the role while Cunha and Mbeumo are both most effective when deployed in behind a centre forward. Jackson might not be Manchester United’s dream signing, but he could be what it needs.