As he departed for his summer holidays, Jose Mourinho issued public instructions to Ed Woodward. "He knows since March who I want, what I want, how much I want," said Manchester United's manager of his executive vice-chairman. "He knows everything since March. Now it's for him to work because he will have holidays in August and in August I'm working."
The message could hardly have been more explicit: get transfer business done early. And United's rivals are trying to do the same, with Manchester City having already spent almost £80 million and Liverpool's attempt to get ahead in the race for Southampton's Virgil van Dijk landing them with an official complaint from the Saints.