Ex-Man United coach says club chose Rasmus Hojlund over Harry Kane

Speaking at the launch of Ladbrokes 'Gaffer of all Accas', Benni McCarthy revealed that Man United chose to sign Rasmus Hojlund over a move that would have seen Harry Kane join the Red Devils.

• "In the summer of 2023, Harry Kane was our No. 1 target. … But obviously the price tag was an issue.”ffff

• “We should have just bitten the bullet and got Harry Kane and then also tried to invest in Rasmus Hojlund. That would have been the best thing for Rasmus if he had someone like Harry Kane involved.”

• Harry Kane, for me, was the complete package. Unfortunately, the club didn’t see it that way. … So we stopped pursuing Kane, and we ended up getting just Rasmus.”

• “There is too much pressure on someone as young as Rasmus Hojlund. … We needed an experienced player to be someone Rasmus could bounce off, could learn from and then gradually work himself into a position where he’s ready and learned enough to lead the line.”
  

In the summer of 2023, Harry Kane was our No. 1 target.

Kane was the prime target, but obviously the price tag was an issue. Because he would have been leaving Spurs for United, a few extra million pounds were added on to the to the price tag, which, you know, for a 30-year-old wasn’t seen to be wise. But for £100 million, if you look at it now, you’d say that it would have been well worth it because he's gone to Bayern and he's still producing, he's still scoring.

We should have just bitten the bullet and got Harry Kane and then also tried to invest in Rasmus Hojlund. That would have been the best thing for Rasmus if he had someone like Harry Kane involved.

So yeah, Harry Kane was Erik’s No. 1 target. Erik really wanted him. Randal Kolo Muani was also very high on that list. Victor Osimhen was also on that list.

But I felt that if you're going to want to spend that kind of money – £100 million plus – then you want to complete package. And Harry Kane, for me, was the complete package.

Unfortunately, the club didn't see it that way. They looked at it as Rasmus Hojlund, in the long run, would be a more prized asset than investing in both Rasmus and Harry Kane. So we stopped pursuing Kane, and we ended up getting just Rasmus.

You know, I definitely think our biggest need is a recognised striker.

There is too much pressure on someone as young as Rasmus Hojlund. I was there when he when he arrived and worked with him really closely. He's quick, he's strong, he's unbelievable running in behind, running at people and getting on the end of balls. But it's just not worked for him so far.

I felt that we needed a little bit more experience. We needed an experienced player to be someone Rasmus could bounce off, could learn from and then gradually work himself into a position where he's ready and learned enough to lead the line.

And I think that's probably where United went wrong. I think they could have gone for someone else like a player who was suggested when I was there: Randal Kolo Muani.

Muani was only 25, but he's vastly experienced. He's played in the World Cup final. He's got that aura about him where he also wants to achieve things, and he wants to become a French player who could get close to what Thierry Henry, David Trezeguet and Karim Benzema have done. He's one of those strikers. He wants to be mentioned in the same way as those great players.

So I thought he would have been someone who would have been really good for Man United because he's also not shy about working hard. He works tirelessly, and he knows where the goal is.

So he would have been an ideal player to have brought in to have with Rasmus Hojland. But to rely on a very young player to take the club to the next level was maybe just a little bit too soon

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