Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has had his say over which two transfers could have altered the club's future for the better had they stumped up the £205million needed at the time
Rio Ferdinand gestures with his hands on his podcast
Rio Ferdinand has suggested Man United could be living in a different world had they signed Harry Kane and Declan Rice in 2023
(Image: YouTube/Rio Ferdinand Presents)
Rio Ferdinand has called out Manchester United for failing to sign Harry Kane and Declan Rice when both players were on the market. And the Old Trafford legend even went so far as to suggest United's Kane miss was "the biggest mistake" the club has made in modern times.
Kane, 32, and Rice, 26, each completed transfers for roughly the same £100million fee in the summer of 2023. The former cut ties with Tottenham to join Bayern Munich, while Rice departed West Ham to join up with Arsenal.
Both players have gone on to become critical figures for their respective teams, while Man United's malaise has dragged on. But Ferdinand, 46, has argued they'd be living in a different reality today had they managed to get both those deals over the line two years ago.
The United great welcomed former United team-mate Michael Owen on his Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast and discussed how the environment at their old stomping ground can "kill talent." Owen, 45, then raised the point that the Red Devils should have got Kane when he left Spurs, leading his host to suggest another name who could have transformed the squad.
"That's the biggest mistake I think they've made in the last 10 years," said Ferdinand. "Yeah, well, I think if they go and pay the number that Spurs [wanted], they would have got him.
"And if we're to believe that, then I think if it didn't happen because of a couple of million here or there, I think it was a terrible decision. I honestly think - I'll say this, and I'm convinced - If United had gone and got Declan Rice and Harry Kane in that window, Man United are in a different place now. Because again, it goes back to the environment. Those two drive an environment, I think."
Bayern's Harry Kane stands with the Bundesliga trophy on the town hall balcony, at the championship celebration in Munich
Kane finally ended his career-long wait for a major trophy this year
Kane has been a rampant success since joining Bayern for £100m and finally ended his wait for a major trophy earlier this year when he won the Bundesliga. He has finished as the top scorer in Germany's top flight in each of his two seasons to date, as well as being named Bundesliga Player of the Season for the 2024/25 campaign.
England's all time top scorer has netted 91 goals in 100 appearances for Die Roten, as well as recording 28 assists. And he has shown age isn't creeping up on him just yet after firing off the mark this season, scoring six times in just four outings for Bayern.
United were strongly linked with the striker in 2023, Erik ten Hag's second summer at the club, but ended up signing the far less experienced Rasmus Hojlund instead. The Dane has just left on loan for Napoli, and Ruben Amorim is hoping new signings like Benjamin Sesko and Matheus Cunha can have a greater impact up front.
Declan Rice of Arsenal celebrates scoring his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Manchester United FC and Arsenal
Declan Rice could have been a Manchester United player
Likewise, United have also spent vast sums on midfield upgrades in the last couple of years. Mason Mount was signed from Chelsea for £55m in the summer of 2023, while Manuel Ugarte cost £42.3m the following summer, but neither player has set the world alight at Old Trafford.
Rice, who scored against United in March, has become a firm fan favourite at the Emirates and is a key cog in the England XI. Amid the sea of creative or defensively minded talents in Amorim's engine room, Rice is precisely the kind of rounded midfielder United have been missing for years.
Given the Red Devils' struggle for goals in the last couple of campaigns, including a historically barren 2024/25 season, a proven scorer like Kane would undoubtedly be welcomed into the current squad.