Andy Cole is confused by Manchester United’s interest in Mason Mount because Manchester City wouldn’t sign him, and warned his former club over their potential move for Harry Kane.
Erik ten Hag is reportedly very keen on bringing Mount – who is yet to agree a contract extension with Chelsea – to Old Trafford this summer, with United said to be preparing a £70m bid, though the Blues want £85m.
And Cole thinks Mount not getting in the Chelsea team should be reason enough for United to be targeting better players, despite Mount actually not playing due to injury.
“Would Manchester City look to bring in a player like Mason Mount to make them better?” Cole told Punters.Pub. “You’ve got to look at players and say, right, would Man City try and buy this player? Because if you’re going to close the gap, you can’t be buying players that are not going to improve you. That’s the way I look at things.
“For Mount not to be getting in the Chelsea team, you have to think why that is? Because it’s not as if Chelsea are pulling up any trees to keep hold of him.”
Cole also warned United that signing Harry Kane – who’s on Ten Hag’s striker shortlist – won’t automatically make them title contenders.
“Bringing one player into score goals is not going to win you the league,” Cole added. “Ultimately, Kane would make Manchester United better, but I’m not going to buy into the narrative that if United get Harry Kane, they’ve got a good chance to win the league. If one player is going to make such a difference, why doesn’t every team in the top four just buy one star player each year? Because it’s not that easy. It’s definitely not that easy.
“Manchester City have dominated the league, and it’s not just about Erling Haaland getting all the goals he’s got. If you look at where the goals are coming from now, at the moment, a lot are coming from the midfield.
“If you look at Manchester City, what they have as a team and the quality they have, do you think one player is going to make United able to catch them? It’s not feasibly possible. That means Liverpool could just buy one player, then they will win the league, or Tottenham could buy one player… It doesn’t work like that. It’s about buying better players, and better recruitment which looks to move the club forward.
“You can’t be buying the same calibre of players that you already have now because you won’t move forward, you have to try and improve on what you have, so fingers crossed United will be able to do that in the summer.”
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