Michael Owen believes signing Erling Haaland would allow Manchester United to steer clear of ageing stars.
The Norwegian striker could be Manchester United’s main goalscoring outlet for the next 10 years, says Owen, who views the Borussia Dortmund star as the perfect signing to put a stop to stop-gap signings to a close.
Manchester United’s transfer policy has been subject to criticism for years and Owen thinks Haaland is the first option they should be looking up front.
The only problem with these signings — Henrik Larsson, Robin van Persie, Zlatan Ibrahimovic — is that none of them were long-term, and Edinson Cavani is likely to be the same.
Owen thinks United need another Wayne Rooney type signing.
The former United striker told Stadium Astro: “If you look at the recent past of Manchester United, they have been buying a lot of players that have been coming to the twilight of their career — when you look at Cavani, before that Ibrahimovic, before that Van Persie, Henrik Larsson.”
Perhaps ironically — except he joined United on a free in 2009 — Owen ignores the fact he wasn’t a spring chicken when Sir Alex Ferguson signed him.
“They have gone for players right at the end of their career,” Owen added. “The last one they bought early on in their career is Wayne Rooney. At least then you have got a player that is going to last you for 10 years.
“At the moment, Manchester United have struggled to find that young player that is going to take them all the way as a No 9. I think the one player out there that springs to mind, a player that could be in their team for 10 years and stop them having to buy stop-gaps all the time, is Haaland at Dortmund. He is the player on everybody’s lips at the moment.”
Dimitar Berbatov is another former United striker who has urged the club to move for Haaland.
Although, the Belgian is also of the opinion that Mason Greenwood could yet grow into that prolific goalscorer United are crying out for.
Berbatov said (via GOAL): “Definitely he’s [Haaland] the guy. He is still so young and the future is ahead of him. The amount of goals he is scoring is unbelievable. He could be a great fit for United if he develops in the same way he is doing now.
“He is going to cost a lot of money but for a talent like this, you can try your best to buy him, but honestly I would like to see Mason Greenwood develop and become better and better. I’m a big admirer of him. I would like to see more chances given to him to. Show how good he is.
“I like Martial and Rashford as well. If United don’t go and try to buy someone, I would like to see those three develop.”
Read more: Manchester United defender closing in on £1.5m transfer to Bayer Leverkusen
