BREAKING NEWS Manchester United face £28MILLION dent in their transfer budget – and may now have to sell players in January – after they budgeted on reaching the quarter-finals only to fall well short

• READ: Manchester United’s Champions League campaign came to an end 
• Exiting European competition entirely leaves a major dent in their transfer kitty 
• Back off Erik ten Hag! Insipid Man United performances are on the players – not the manager – Listen to why on It’s All Kicking Off 

Manchester United’s abject failure to qualify for the knockout stage of the Champions League has left a £28million dent in the club’s transfer budget and could put more pressure on the club to sell players in January.

Financial Fair Play regulations bit into United’s budget last summer, and similar restrictions were expected at the end of this season depending on what they earned from playing in Europe.

However, Erik ten Hag’s side went out of the Champions League following their defeat to Bayern Munich at Old Trafford on Tuesday night, and finishing bottom of their group for only the second time ever meant that United missed out on the Europa League as well.

It’s understood that United were unlikely to be active in the January transfer window anyway aside from from loan deals that could see Jadon Sancho and Donny van de Beek leave the club.

Sources insist that the price of failure in Europe will not put them under increased pressure to sell next month. However, United may be more open to offers for Anthony Martial, Raphael Varane and Casemiro as they try to balance the books.

Manchester United were unceremoniously dumped out of the Champions League on Tuesday

Erik ten Hag will now likely be forced to sell in January with United missing out on £28million

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The club’s European debacle will definitely have an impact on the amount of money available for new signings in the summer, regardless of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s £1.25billion investment in the club.

It’s difficult to put an exact figure on how much it has cost United because no-one knows how far they could have gone in the competition if they had qualified.

However, the club budget on reaching the quarter-finals, and it’s understood that the overall cost of not reaching that stage is around £28m in lost prize money, matchday revenue and broadcast income.

It is back to the drawing board for United as they now face a fight to finish inside the top four

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Not including money from the TV revenue pool, reaching the knockout stage would have earned United £12.5m for reaching the last 16, £25.7m for the quarter-final, £39.9m for the semis, and £60m for winning the European Cup.

Current champions Manchester City estimated that reaching the final against Inter Milan in Istanbul last season made up a significant part of their £50m increase in broadcast revenue.

Failure to qualify for the Europa League only cost United an initial £430,000 in prize money, but the additional matchday revenue and prize money would have increased that figure significantly.

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