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THE next 23 days might just be the most important in Manchester United's history.
There has been plenty of conjecture in recent weeks about what is happening inside the corridors of the world's most famous football club.
Are United on the wane? Can they stay at the top? What is their vision for the future?
As always, there are more questions than answers.
But we should have a better idea come 5pm on Monday, February 1.
That is when the transfer window closes.
That is when we should be able to chart the course United are taking.
And that is when we will see whether the Glazers are genuinely as serious as they say they are about backing Alex Ferguson's bid to extend the club's domestic and European dominance into the next decade and beyond.
Or whether the American owners are content with United deteriorating into a club that can no longer attract or keep the best players in the world.
And you have to say that on recent history the prognosis is hardly encouraging.
BROTHERS IN DEBT ... (from left) Joel, Bryan and Avram Glazer
The failure to keep both Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez last summer must have set alarm bells ringing.
Ignoring the fact that Ronaldo had always earmarked his determination to play for his boyhood idols Real Madrid, his departure to the Bernabeu, albeit for a world-record £80million, must have been galling for a club used to enticing players from rival clubs.
The hunter unexpectedly became the hunted as United, like the many clubs they have cherry-picked talent from in the past, had to face up to the stark realisation that, under this regime, all of their players - even the best ones - have a price.
Tevez's decision to quit Old Trafford and move across town to neighbours Manchester City only served to emphasise the point.
Ferguson may have brought in Antonio Valencia from Wigan for £16m, Bordeaux's Gabriel Obertan at £3m and Michael Owen on a free transfer.
But it is debatable as to whether the United boss has actually replaced Tevez and Ronaldo.
Valencia is settling in nicely after initially struggling to adjust to his grander surroundings, while Owen needs regular matches to maintain the sharpness he has been able to display in glimpses this term, most notably when he hit a hat-trick in the Champions League win at Wolfsburg.
Inevitably, the burden to replace Tevez and Ronaldo has fallen on Wayne Rooney's shoulders.
Rooney has coped more than admirably, netting 14 times in 19 Premier League appearances so far this term.
Mercifully, for club and country, he has remained injury-free.
Ferguson, England boss Fabio Capello the legions of Three Lions and Red Devils fans the world over will be hoping that stays the case as the World Cup approaches.
Yet it has become painfully obvious in recent weeks that Rooney cannot fill the void on his own, no matter how gifted he is and how hard he tries.
I said before the season started that Rooney would need help in attack and that has not changed.
United, despite Owen and the underperforming Dimitar Berbatov in their ranks, need another frontman to take the weight off their star man's shoulders.
I would be surprised if Sir Alex has not long pinpointed the signing of a new striker to improve his squad - not to mention a defender to ease the pressure on his backline that has been besieged by injuries.
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The only conclusions we can draw as to why he has not yet managed to secure these vital new acquisitions is that he has either not earmarked the right players - or the board are not backing the manager's attempts to strengthen his squad.
It seems unthinkable that Ferguson, manager of one of the world's most successful money-making clubs with an estimated annual turnover of more than £250m, would not have money to spend on new players.
Especially as he has spent less than a quarter of the £80m United got for Ronaldo last summer.
But the Glazers' 2005 takeover has reportedly imposed debts of £690m on a club that is now said to have balance books as red as their team's shirts.
And, whether it is coincidence or not, Ferguson does not appear to have the spending power he once had.
Yet Sunday's FA Cup defeat at home to Leeds, an accident waiting to happen according to many Stretford Enders, showed that the United board need to back their manager in this transfer window if he is to keep the club in the style they have become accustomed to in recent seasons.
Despite what some may claim, the Red Devils' mini-slump is not the result of a manager losing his way.
Fergie is still a top manager who has the capability to see his club through this transitional period and maintain their greatness.
But he needs the correct tools to do the job, and that means the capability to strengthen his squad so they can continue to challenge the best at home and in Europe.
The manager has done so much for United, now it is time for the club to support him.
There has been plenty of conjecture in recent weeks about what is happening inside the corridors of the world's most famous football club.
Are United on the wane? Can they stay at the top? What is their vision for the future?
As always, there are more questions than answers.
But we should have a better idea come 5pm on Monday, February 1.
That is when the transfer window closes.
That is when we should be able to chart the course United are taking.
And that is when we will see whether the Glazers are genuinely as serious as they say they are about backing Alex Ferguson's bid to extend the club's domestic and European dominance into the next decade and beyond.
Or whether the American owners are content with United deteriorating into a club that can no longer attract or keep the best players in the world.
And you have to say that on recent history the prognosis is hardly encouraging.
BROTHERS IN DEBT ... (from left) Joel, Bryan and Avram GlazerThe failure to keep both Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez last summer must have set alarm bells ringing.
Ignoring the fact that Ronaldo had always earmarked his determination to play for his boyhood idols Real Madrid, his departure to the Bernabeu, albeit for a world-record £80million, must have been galling for a club used to enticing players from rival clubs.
The hunter unexpectedly became the hunted as United, like the many clubs they have cherry-picked talent from in the past, had to face up to the stark realisation that, under this regime, all of their players - even the best ones - have a price.
Tevez's decision to quit Old Trafford and move across town to neighbours Manchester City only served to emphasise the point.
Ferguson may have brought in Antonio Valencia from Wigan for £16m, Bordeaux's Gabriel Obertan at £3m and Michael Owen on a free transfer.
But it is debatable as to whether the United boss has actually replaced Tevez and Ronaldo.
Valencia is settling in nicely after initially struggling to adjust to his grander surroundings, while Owen needs regular matches to maintain the sharpness he has been able to display in glimpses this term, most notably when he hit a hat-trick in the Champions League win at Wolfsburg.
Inevitably, the burden to replace Tevez and Ronaldo has fallen on Wayne Rooney's shoulders.
Rooney has coped more than admirably, netting 14 times in 19 Premier League appearances so far this term.
Mercifully, for club and country, he has remained injury-free.
Ferguson, England boss Fabio Capello the legions of Three Lions and Red Devils fans the world over will be hoping that stays the case as the World Cup approaches.
Yet it has become painfully obvious in recent weeks that Rooney cannot fill the void on his own, no matter how gifted he is and how hard he tries.
I said before the season started that Rooney would need help in attack and that has not changed.
United, despite Owen and the underperforming Dimitar Berbatov in their ranks, need another frontman to take the weight off their star man's shoulders.
I would be surprised if Sir Alex has not long pinpointed the signing of a new striker to improve his squad - not to mention a defender to ease the pressure on his backline that has been besieged by injuries.
var RStag = "";try{RStag = segQS;}catch(e){RStag = "";}document.write('');
The only conclusions we can draw as to why he has not yet managed to secure these vital new acquisitions is that he has either not earmarked the right players - or the board are not backing the manager's attempts to strengthen his squad.
It seems unthinkable that Ferguson, manager of one of the world's most successful money-making clubs with an estimated annual turnover of more than £250m, would not have money to spend on new players.
Especially as he has spent less than a quarter of the £80m United got for Ronaldo last summer.
But the Glazers' 2005 takeover has reportedly imposed debts of £690m on a club that is now said to have balance books as red as their team's shirts.
And, whether it is coincidence or not, Ferguson does not appear to have the spending power he once had.
Yet Sunday's FA Cup defeat at home to Leeds, an accident waiting to happen according to many Stretford Enders, showed that the United board need to back their manager in this transfer window if he is to keep the club in the style they have become accustomed to in recent seasons.
Despite what some may claim, the Red Devils' mini-slump is not the result of a manager losing his way.
Fergie is still a top manager who has the capability to see his club through this transitional period and maintain their greatness.
But he needs the correct tools to do the job, and that means the capability to strengthen his squad so they can continue to challenge the best at home and in Europe.
The manager has done so much for United, now it is time for the club to support him.
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