Manchester United are in the midst of a dismal campaign with the Europa League their only hope of silverware this season. In truth, it's been a baptism of fire for Ruben Amorim since joining the club from Sporting CP earlier on in the campaign.

The Portuguese head coach has struggled to transform the fortunes of a stagnating United side, who are in the bottom half of the Premier League table. As things stand, the Reds are in no real danger - despite what some people would have you think - of being drawn into a relegation battle, but that statement alone should be enough to send shivers down the spine of an United fan.

The club's recent accounts show how much they need a return to Europe's elite stage, with the finances available from competing in the Champions League in a league of their own. The financial situation at Old Trafford makes for grim reading and it came as no surprise to see United bring in just two new faces in January.

READ MORE: 'He's shot' - Gary Neville's worrying admission about 'struggling' Manchester United player

READ MORE: Manchester United confirm 18-man travelling squad for Real Sociedad Europa League fixture

Patrick Dorgu was brought in to strengthen United's options at left-back, for a reported fee of £25 million, signing a five-year deal with the club. It's too early to judge the youngster who has made just four appearances since his January switch and is still getting used to new surroundings.

United know this season is almost a write-off and they should have one eye on preparing for next season, but that alone won't be straightforward. Amorim has already stressed that the club need to sell players before they can reinvest, with Ineos and Sir Jim Ratcliffe opting for a different approach in the transfer market.

The United chief wants the club to sign young talents from across the globe and unlock their potential at Old Trafford, rather than paying inflated fees for stars who have already broken through onto the scene.

A recent report from CIES football observatory looks into the rising values of talents outside of Europe's top-five leagues. It makes for interesting reading.

In theory, the players on this list are exactly the type of talents United should be targeting and it'll come as no surprise to see Sporting youngster Geovany Quenda on said list. The versatile wide player, who has been linked with a move to Manchester, ranks ninth in the list in terms of players whose value has risen the most of the last six months.

The 17-year-old, who could be set for a reunion with Amorim, is valued at €21 million (£17.6m), a remarkable €18.7m (£15.6m) increase over the last six months. He's a player the United boss knows well and could well be a player we see arrive at the club soon.

However, the report also has a former Reds academy talent whose value has increased by a remarkable £23.8m to £32.7m over the course of the last six months, the third highest price increase outside of Europe's top five leagues. That man is Alvaro Carreras Fernandez.

The former United defender left the club on a permanent transfer in the summer, joining Benfica for €6m rising to €9m - a snip of his current value. It's a further sign - not that one was necessarily needed - of the poor transfer business done by the club in recent years.

The Spaniard has been a prominent figure for Benfica this season after making his loan move a permanent one. The left-back didn't make a single first-team appearance for United despite being highly rated.

United signed the likes of Sergio Reguilon on loan from Tottenham and Tyrell Malacia to provide competition for Luke Shaw, and yet neither player is at the club currently. Had the Reds kept Fernandez, they could have saved themselves an unwanted headache.

However, that's now all water under the bride and Amorim isn't expected to bolster the left-hand side of his defence this summer after signing Dorgu last month, with Shaw expected to return to full fitness soon. That being said, United's option-to-buy as part of Fernandez' move to Benfica is reportedly around £25million.

The Spaniard spoke about transfer speculation earlier this week but kept his cards close to his chest. "The truth is that I'm overlooking it a bit," he told A Bola when asked about transfer speculation.

"I'm concentrating on what I have to do, because every three days I have a game. There's always interest from teams and everyone wants to grow, but I'm doing very well here [at Benfica].

"Manchester United have an option to buy that has been signed, but I'm very happy here."

The left-back has caught the eye of a number of high profile European clubs in recent weeks, including Real Madrid and has a reported €50million release clause. This is where it gets interesting.

We've seen clubs in the top flight get creative in order to comply with the Premier League's PSR measures, and buying Fernandez back for a snip of his value could be a shrewd piece of business. They're either getting a player for Amorim's first-team squad, or a player who they could sell for more money and reap the benefits of said market value.

If clubs are willing to pay a fee in the region of £50million, United could make around £20million in profit with a quick turnaround this summer by activating his release clause and flipping for profit in the same window. After all, we've seen the likes of Chelsea and Aston Villa operate in a similar fashion and it's one avenue that could be explored.