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Rob Dawson, Correspondent
Manchester United‘s new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has said he wants to sign “the next Kylian Mbappé” rather than enter the race for the French superstar’s signature this summer.
Ratcliffe and his team, headed by Sir Dave Brailsford, are preparing for their first summer transfer window since acquiring a 27.7% stake in the club.
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Mbappé is available after announcing his decision to leave Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the season, and ESPN sources say he is expected to join Real Madrid, but Ratcliffe suggested United will look to sign emerging talent rather than established stars.
“I think in a way what I would rather do is try to sign the next Mbappé than spend a fortune trying to buy success,” Ratcliffe told Geraint Jones on his Cycling Club podcast.
“It’s not that clever buying Mbappé, anyone can figure that one out. What’s much more challenging is to find the next Mbappé or [Jude] Bellingham or Roy Keane.”
United have spent heavily on transfers over the last decade but have still endured a prolonged period of underachievement, winning just four major trophies since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.
Marquee signings like Paul Pogba and Ángel Di María struggled after arriving at Old Trafford for large fees but Ratcliffe hinted that the club’s approach to recruitment is set to change.
“The solution isn’t spending a lot of money on a couple of great players,” Ratcliffe said.
“They’ve done that if you look at what they’ve done the last 10 years, they have spent a lot of money on a couple of great players.
“The first thing you need to do is get the right people in the right boxes managing the club and make sure we get recruitment right, that’s such a vital part of a football club, getting recruitment right.”
Ratcliffe has already made a number of changes to United’s off-field structure by hiring Omar Berrada from Manchester City as the new CEO and luring Dan Ashworth from Newcastle United as sporting director.
There are question marks about whether manager Erik ten Hag will continue in his role next season but Ratcliffe chose to dodge a question about whether he’s called Jürgen Klopp, who will leave Liverpool in the summer.
“You can’t ask questions like that,” Ratcliffe said.
But the 71-year-old British billionaire admitted he is a fan of the German coach.
“I didn’t see the match between Liverpool and Man City and one of the things I read was that only three or four of the Liverpool players would get in the City team,” Ratcliffe added.
“But Klopp has this ability to drive his players to a frenzy where they have total commitment on the pitch. That’s one of the things a good coach can do.”