Paul Ince hits out at two Man Utd summer transfers as INEOS mistake raised – ‘I don’t understand’ | OneFootball

Ex-Manchester United midfielder Paul Ince has hit out at his former club for signing the £120m pair Carlos Baleba and Andrey Santos this summer.

The signings of Baleba and Santos came as part of Man Utd’s midfield rebuild in the summer, with Youri Tielemans their third arrival in this department.

The Red Devils decided to use most of their funds on fixing their midfield, with Karl Darlow and several youngsters also recruited.

This has arguably left Man Utd short in other positions, with the Premier League giants also needing a left-back, a centre-back, a winger and/or a striker.

And Ince thinks Man Utd would have been better off signing a full-back and a striker instead of Baleba and Santos, partly because they “already have” Kobbie Mainoo.

“I don’t understand why United would buy Santos for £50m and Baleba for £70m when they already have Mainoo,” Ince told The Mirror.

“I felt there might be other areas where the money could have been spent.

“Perhaps in the full-back area or a striker to help them push for the top two or three.”

“Potentially, he is a very, very good player…”

And Ince has also encouraged Mainoo to step up and have a more prominent role for Man Utd this season.

“With the greatest respect to Ipswich, if they are going to come to United and play open football, I could still do a job against them. It goes without saying that Kobbie has to do that week in, week out,” Ince added.

“And I want to see someone who takes control of the game. I don’t want to see someone who just gets the ball and passes it square or moves it on to Bruno Fernandes. I want to see someone who drives forward, who plays one-twos.

“How many shots does he have in game? When I played I used to make sure I had at least three or four shots in a game. And, essentially, he is playing exactly the same role as I did.”

Ince went on: “There is more to his game than just passing it and letting the likes of Bruno and Cunha do their stuff. He can add a lot more to come. He can get more shots off.

“He can drive with the ball. He’s got good feet, he’s got lovely feet. All the attributes he has got, he needs to start showing them more.

“You’ve got be believe in how good you can be and not play the safety first football. Potentially, he is a very, very good player.”