Former Manchester United manager Ron Atkinson has suggested that the club have prioritised the wrong transfer targets.
Ineos made five major signings in what was their first summer transfer window in charge of Manchester United since the minority takeover.
The summer was mostly focused on improving the defence, with a £50m double deal for Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui after United had beaten Real Madrid to Leny Yoro.
Manuel Ugarte arrived for £42m to replace Scott McTominay in midfield and Joshua Zirkzee was signed for £36m to bolster the striker department after the exit of Anthony Martial.
However, after scoring on his debut, Joshua Zirkzee has failed to add to his goal tally in the following nine games and United’s goalscoring record is bleak.
Top-class striker should have been Man United priority
At 23 years old, Zirkzee has arrived as a star for the future, not the present.
The same can be said for his strike partner Rasmus Hojlund, who has also only scored once in five appearances after missing the start of the season with an injury.
United have spent huge money on the two strikers, but they will need time to settle and develop before they can be expected to score 20 goals a season.
That is a worry for ex-United boss Ron Atkinson, who believes the lack of a star striker at Old Trafford is a big issue.
As quoted by the Daily Star, Atkinson said: “United have a lot of talent in the squad but one of the real problems is identifying the right talent.
“The standout gap in the team, for a long time, has been a top-of-the-range front player and there’s been an awful lot of money spent on like-for-like in defence and midfield.
“But, for me, the big omission has been a top goalscorer. That should’ve been their priority. They are the lifeline of any team. Over the last 18 months this has stood out like a sore thumb.
“Thinking about it, the last natural striker we had, who took his chances, was Zlatan Ibrahimovic. And he was about 70.
“It’s remarkable when you have a forward you can rely on to score how the rest of the team hangs in.
“Your defence plays better, the midfielders work harder because there’s someone up front who can score out of nothing. That hope brings extra belief.
Man United may regret £100m Harry Kane chance
United have been linked to plenty of star strikers since Zlatan Ibrahimovic left the club, but instead they have opted for younger options to lead the line.
Harry Kane was heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford when he decided to leave Tottenham in 2023.
England’s all-time leading goalscorer eventually completed a £100m move to Bayern Munich, and Erik ten Hag has since admitted he wanted to sign Kane.
After missing out on the now 31-year-old, United instead spent £64 signing Hojlund from Atalanta.
Atkinson believes United may regret not signing Kane when he was available.
“My big regret was we didn’t sign Gary [Lineker] from Leicester after winning the Cup. It was all lined up but we needed to sell first and it didn’t happen.
“I’m not saying it easy to find top strikers but in the end maybe you spend your whole budget to get one… like when Kane was available.”
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