Forget signing Bellingham and Mbappe, Ratcliffe tells Manchester United fans
Ratcliffe has taken charge of football matters at the club.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has warned that Manchester United are unlikely to pursue superstar signings such as Jude Bellingham or Kylian Mbappe.
The billionaire Ineos chairman has taken control of footballing operations at United as part of his 25 per cent purchase.
Appearing as a guest on Geraint Thomas’ Cycling Club podcast, the 71-year-old was asked whether he would try and sign England star Bellingham.
Ratcliffe replied: “He is a great footballer. It’s not where our focus is, the solution isn’t spending a lot of money on a couple of great players.
“They have done that, if you look at the last 10 years, they have spent a lot of money on a couple of great players.
“The first thing we need to do is get the right people in the right boxes who are managing and organising the club. And make sure we get recruitment right. It is such a vital part of football today.”
Ratcliffe says he is more interested in recruiting future superstars rather than the current best players in the world like Bellingham and Mbappe, who are set to team up at Real Madrid next season.
“I would rather sign the next Mbappe rather than spend a fortune buying success,” he added.
“It’s not that clever buying Mbappe. Anyone could figure that one out. More challenging is to find the next Mbappe or next Bellingham or next Roy Keane.”
United have not won a Premier League title since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped down as manager in 2013 and are on track to miss out on Champions League qualification for next season.
Ratcliffe confirmed that he and his long-term right-hand man Dave Brailsford, formerly of Brish Cycling and Team Sky, would take the lead on football at United.
