‘We cannot let him go elsewhere’ – Ferdinand orders Man Utd to sign £52m midfielder | OneFootball

Man Utd legend Rio Ferdinand insists the Red Devils must invest in AZ Alkmaar midfielder Kees Smit as soon as possible.

The Red Devils spent over £200m on five new signings last summer and it is set to be another busy transfer window for Man Utd in a couple of months.

Man Utd are looking to bring in at least two midfielders after neglecting that position last summer, while a left-back and left-winger are also understood to be on the agenda.

Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson, Newcastle’s Sandro Tonali and Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton have been among the midfielders linked with a move to Man Utd in the summer.

But Ferdinand thinks AZ Alkmaar’s Smit is the midfielder they should be going for as a matter of urgency with the Man Utd legend describing the Netherlands international as “the truth”.

“He’s one you go: ‘I’m buying him.’ It doesn’t have to be for now. I hope he does come in and takes the world by storm, but if we’ve got to wait six months to a year for him, I do not care. We cannot let him go elsewhere.

“I’ve seen him play a couple of times now and that’s all I need to see. I’ve seen the clips… man. I’ve spoken to some guys in Holland, friends. The kid has got it.”

Harry Maguire signed a new contract to stay at Man Utd until at least the end of next season and Ferdinand admits he was wrong to tell the centre-back to sign for West Ham in 2023, when he was struggling for minutes at Old Trafford.

Ferdinand added: “He was tossed about I think he was offered to West Ham and various other clubs over the time and he said no.

“And I was one of the guys that was saying: ‘go and play, go out and play.’

“And I have to give him his credit. He’s stuck by his decision, his determination, and his kind of stubbornness has gotten him to this point here.”

Marcus Rashford, who looks set to leave Man Utd for Barcelona or elsewhere in the summer transfer window, scored a decent goal for the Catalan giants as they beat Atletico Madrid 2-1 over the weekend.

And Ferdinand insists he would still have Rashford back at Man Utd with Barcelona looking to renegotiate the €30m buyback clause in his loan deal.

“Oh, what a goal, what a good goal, man.” When asked if he would have Rashford back at Man Utd, Ferdinand replied: “Absolutely if Marcus Rashford is playing like that.

“That goal there is Marcus Rashford, right? That isn’t a surprise. We’re not sitting here going, ‘Oh my God, did you see Marcus Rashford, what he did the other day? Never knew he could do that.’

“No, no, that’s what we expect. That’s what Marcus Rashford has made us feel is the norm with him, because he’s that good, potentially, he’s that good, right? It’s just that we hadn’t seen it for a while at Manchester United, and there are obviously reasons behind that, but let’s forget that now, that page has turned, right?

“He’s now at Barcelona, 10 goals, 10 assists this season. What a loan signing he has been for Barcelona, if you look at it like that, and, so, would you have that Marcus Rashford back? 100%, right? But I think that ship has sailed and I think Marcus Rashford is looking forwards.

“I think deep down, he’ll want to go to Barcelona, and I just hope that actually materialises for him, because I think when you look at it like that, is he playing consistently like the Marcus Rashford that we knew before? I’d argue probably not.”

Ferdinand continued: “If Barcelona get him for the reported £26million that we’re talking about, and they get that version of Marcus Rashford, that is an absolute robbery, it’s a steal.

“So, as I said, I’ll just say good luck to him, I want him to do well, you know what I mean? Because I’ve seen him grow as a young player at Man Utd, and good luck to him in that sense.”