Manchester United Made ‘Big Mistakes’ Not Signing Declan Rice And Harry Kane

Former Manchester United players Paul Scholes and Rio Ferdinand strongly criticised the club’s summer transfer decisions, particularly the failure to secure signings like Declan Rice and Harry Kane. Both players chose other clubs, with Rice joining Arsenal and Kane moving to Bayern Munich.

Speaking ahead of Manchester United’s crucial match against Bayern Munich, Scholes lamented the missed opportunities in the transfer market, especially considering the ease of acquiring known quality players like Kane and Rice.

Scholes stated, “I think there were probably a couple of big mistakes in the summer. I think the recruitment at Manchester United this year in the summer was the easiest thing it could ever have been. You’re thinking the likes of Harry Kane, £100 million probably, you get him. He would have come here. The other one was Declan Rice for £100 million. You’re buying proper known quality; the right characters, who know about this club and the country. They’re quality; I thought it was so easy.”

He acknowledged the challenges faced by goalkeeper Andre Onana, who also joined in the summer. Still, he emphasized that the proven quality of players like Rice and Kane would have significantly strengthened the team.

Ferdinand echoed Scholes’ sentiments, highlighting the need for character and resilience in the squad. He emphasized that personalities like Rice and Kane would have brought stability and leadership to the team.

“I think Manchester United needed character, resilience, and an understanding of this league more than anything, more than talent. These guys have talent in abundance, don’t get me wrong, but I think the overriding factor which we’ve seen this season, are the subplots that are around this club; most of it is off the pitch. These guys would have come in and been the guys that lead that in a better way, 100%. You see the way that they’ve walked into their new clubs. Performance-wise, they’re probably the best players in their two new clubs.”