Manchester United legend believes that Declan Rice was ready to make to move to Manchester United before joining Arsenal in the summer of 2023.
Under Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United were well known for buying the top talent from mid-table clubs in the Premier League.
Players such as Michael Carrick, Antonio Valencia, and the legendary Wayne Rooney were all standout talents from other Premier League clubs who were brought to Old Trafford during the Scottish manager’s tenure at the club.
Following Ferguson’s departure, which many point to as the start of Manchester United’s decline, especially in terms of their pulling power, a lot more top talent has opted to move elsewhere.
Declan Rice is just one of these players who made the switch from West Ham to Arsenal when he signed in the 2023 summer transfer window for £105 million.
Ferdinand makes bold Rice to United claim
Declan Rice has been in the headlines this past couple of weeks following his back-to-back man of the match performances against Real Madrid in the quarter finals of the Champions League.
Manchester United legend, Rio Ferdinand, who also started at West Ham, was full of praise for Rice’s performance. Ferdinand also expressed his disappointment that United didn’t try harder to sign him when he was at West Ham.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Rio Ferdinand Presents, he was convinced that the 26-year-old would’ve said yes to a move to Old Trafford.
He said: “We didn’t go and sign him and I think if, and I stand by this, if Man United had come to the table with a checkbook and said ‘We’ll match what Arsenal pay,’ I reckon Declan Rice would have chose Man United.”
This comes after the Daily Mail reported in June 2023 that United were willing to table a bid of £40 million plus Harry Maguire and Anthony Elanga in order to secure Rice prior to his eventual move to Arsenal.
Manchester United instead opted to buy his Chelsea academy teammate, Mason Mount, as well as André Onana, and Rasmus Hojlund for a combined £164.8 million.
Should Manchester United sign more Premier League ready players?
With Ruben Amorim needing a much-needed squad overhaul in this upcoming summer transfer window, many players from the top five European leagues have been linked with a move, and while some have been linked from the Premier League, like Liam Delap from Ipswich, should more be targeted?
Signings that United have made from abroad haven’t had a great success rate. We all saw the talent that Hojlund, Joshua Zirkzee, and Onana showed in the Serie A, but have all failed to inspire when they made the move to Old Trafford.
Premier League readiness is extremely important when considering signing players. The league is the most physically demanding in the world, and players often struggle to adapt and reach their peak performance in the league.
While buying from within the league brings inflated prices, Amorim needs instant results next season and cannot afford another buffer season for all his players to catch up to the pace of such a demanding league.
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