Forget Harry Kane transfer and target this “great player” to help Paul Pogba, says former Man Utd star

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Former Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves has suggested that his old club shouldn’t prioritise a transfer deal for Harry Kane this summer as they’re already pretty strong up front.

The Red Devils already have some fine attacking players in the form of Edinson Cavani, Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood, with Hargreaves pointing out that they had the second highest tally in the Premier League in the season just gone.

Instead of making Kane a priority, Hargreaves told the Manchester Evening News that a signing like West Ham’s Declan Rice could be ideal for Man Utd to help get the best out of Paul Pogba, who often looks better for the French national team due to the style of defensive midfielders around him.

“The pair are said to regularly play video games online together” – which £80m star has struck up a friendship with a key figure at Man Utd? Click here to find out.

“Declan’s a great player,” Hargreaves said. “I don’t think he gets enough credit for his talent and I don’t know why that is. Whether it’s a West Ham thing or that he’s a lovely guy who’s quiet and humble.

“Declan would be great for United. In fact, he can play at centre-back, too, you could play him in a back three as well. I would love to see Declan Rice at United but it’s going to cost a lot of money.

“I don’t think people realise how big Declan Rice is. I interviewed him not too long ago and I said, ‘I don’t think people realise!’ He’s like 6ft 2, 6ft 3. So, physically he’s a big presence in there.

“Football is all about getting the blend right, so I think it’s easy to look at what you have and go, ‘what do you need?’ And for United: they need a centre-back, they need a defensive midfield player and they need a right winger.

“Obviously, Harry Kane would be nice, but they’re the second-highest scorers in the league. You couldn’t say that’s a big issue for United this year. Then you’ve got Mason Greenwood’s development, Cavani has been fabulous.

“You always need to improve. Again, you’ve got to look at your best players – how can you get the best out of them? Paul is probably one of the most scrutinised players in the game and you’re talking about a guy who’s been to a Champions League final, European finals, won the World Cup.

“The guy in the right team, when the balance is good, he functions – he’s proven that. You can’t deny that. With France, he has Kante and Matuidi and maybe they covered some of his deficiencies. Hopefully, you can go and find a guy.

“Look at [Ruben] Dias – the impact he has had on City – all of those fabulous players they have. You get just one guy in there just to make the defence so good that they barely ever concede, and all of a sudden you don’t have to score 100 goals to win the league. You don’t even have to score 80 goals, it’s enough.

Declan Rice could be ideal for Manchester United, says Owen Hargreaves

“If they can get a centre-back in and a defensive midfield player, it might actually bring more out of Paul. You see Bruno’s numbers; they’re crazy, they’re like PlayStation numbers. You’ve got Marcus, you’ve got Mason, maybe Jadon Sancho and Cavani. The potential there is off the charts.”

Rice has certainly looked a potential world-beater with his tremendous form for West Ham this season, and he could surely be a key player for any of the big six clubs.

Many United fans would surely disagree with Hargreaves about Kane, however, with the prolific Tottenham striker looking ideal as a long-term replacement for the ageing Cavani, who surely won’t be able to play week in, week out next season.

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