Ole Gunnar Solskjaer fears it could take years to complete Manchester United’s squad clear-out.

The United manager says the departure of senior players in the last two windows is just the start of the process of renovating his squad, with no guarantee of a turnaround in fortunes in the near future. Romelu Lukaku, Alexis Sánchez and Chris Smalling left for Italy in the summer and Ashley Young has joined them this month.

Solskjaer hopes to add players to his squad but has said it is unrealistic to compete at the top of the Premier League next season even with new arrivals. "We are behind and a fair rate behind the top one now,” he said.

Marcos Rojo is among the players who can leave along with Nemanja Matic, who was one of United’s better performers in the dismal defeat by Burnley on Wednesday evening.

But many of Solskjaer’s underperforming players are on lucrative long-term contracts that will make them difficult to move on. Paul Pogba has also been unsettled but getting the right deal for him to depart will not be straightforward.