Ole Gunnar Solskjaer revealed Manchester United “could’ve and should’ve” signed Declan Rice when he was supervisor.
The United legend took cost at Old Trafford initially on an interim foundation earlier than the membership’s good kind noticed him named the everlasting supervisor following Jose Mourinho’s exit. The Norwegian pulled no punches within the switch market as he tried to deliver the Red Devils again to the forefront of English and European soccer, however in the end failed.
Solskjaer spent upwards of £70m on each Jadon Sancho and Harry Maguire and likewise introduced the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Donny van de Beek and Cristiano Ronaldo to Old Trafford, however the membership by no means made the integral signing of a defensive midfielder.
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Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast in affiliation with SkyBet, Solskjaer mentioned switch enterprise throughout his time within the sizzling seat, the place revealed which Premier League star he wished the membership to pursue however was in the end rejected. He stated: “I really like him [Declan Rice] as a player – we’ve discussed him a few times, and I think we would’ve done well with him in midfield.
“His legs, covering the pitch, and I think he improved a lot on his playmaking as well. Obviously, he would’ve cost some money, but we could’ve and should’ve gone for him.”
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Rice was solely in his fourth season of standard first-team soccer at West Ham when Solskjaer was dismissed as United boss in November 2021, having damaged by way of as a young person in east London. Playing as a centre-back earlier than creating into probably the most coveted defensive midfielders on this planet, Rice was finally prized away from the London Stadium by Arsenal final summer season for £100million.
The 25-year-old has been an important addition to Mikel Arteta’s aspect and has seen the attacking outlay of his sport additionally flourish in north London. He has registered 11 objective involvements within the Premier League to this point.
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United as an alternative by no means signed a midfield anchor beneath Solskjaer, splashing £70million on a then-29-year-old Casemiro in August 2022. The Brazilian was the membership’s first defensive midfield signing since Mourinho spent £40m on Nemanja Matic in the summertime of 2017.