Manchester United shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe has claimed he is not looking to sign the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham as such transfers would not be ‘clever’.
Mbappe will leave Paris Saint-Germain this summer after choosing not to extend his expiring contract, and he is in talks with Real Madrid over a move to the Santiago Bernabeu.
The forward has been linked with various Premier League clubs too, though most have distanced themselves from a deal due to his wage demands.
United have been tentatively thrown into discussions surrounding Mbappe, while Bellingham took a meeting with the club in 2020 before joining Borussia Dortmund instead.
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Speaking on the Geraint Thomas Cycling Club podcast, Ratcliffe outlined his transfer plans and why they will not include the Mbappe or Bellingham.
“He [Bellingham] is a great footballer [but] it’s not where our focus is,” Ratcliffe said.
“The solution isn’t spending a lot of money on a couple of great players. They’ve done that, if you look at the last 10 years. The first thing we need to do is get the right people in the right boxes, managing and organising the club.
“We must make sure we get recruitment right, such a vital part of running a football club is getting recruitment right, finding new players.
“I’d rather find the next Mbappe, rather than spend a fortune to buy success.
“It’s not that clever, is it, buying Mbappe? In a way, anyone could figure that one out. But what’s much more challenging is to find the next Mbappe, or next Bellingham, or the next Roy Keane.”
