Paul Scholes has urged Manchester United to replace Cristiano Ronaldo in January - and the Old Trafford icon believes either Cody Gakpo or Christopher Nkunku could fill the void left by the veteran striker.
Ronaldo was released from the final six months of his contract with "immediate effect" last week by United - just days after the 37-year-old slammed the club hierarchy in a scathing, unsanctioned interview with Piers Morgan.
Ronaldo had been consigned to a bit-part role following the arrival of new boss Erik ten Hag, but his exit leaves the Dutchman light on attacking options ahead of the second half of the Premier League season. And Scholes believes United need to act sooner rather than later when it comes to bolstering their frontline.
Scholes, who clocked up more than 700 appearances during his illustrious United playing career, has already highlighted two of Europe's most coveted forwards - although Nkunku is believed to have already agreed a deal to sign for Chelsea after undoing private medical checks with the Londoners in the summer.
Speaking to MUTV's The Debate, Scholes said: "I think there's a couple of forwards they might look at. The kid at RB Leipzig that's been linked with Chelsea, Nkunku. Centre forward is obviously the big position that needs filling.
"We have Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford who can both play there, but I think Marcus prefers being out wide and Anthony's injury record isn't great. January might be too soon [to replace Ronaldo], they're probably looking at next summer now, but I do think there are players out there."
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Scholes then touched on Gakpo, who came close to moving to United in the summer. Ten Hag and the Old Trafford hierarchy pressed ahead with a mega-money deal to bring Antony to Manchester instead of Gakpo, but the PSV Eindhoven star is likely to be in demand in January once again.
The 23-year-old has scored three goals in as many games for the Netherlands at the World Cup - and that means PSV are likely to demand a sum in excess of the £35million they were set to bank in the summer.
"The lad at PSV – Gakpo – is doing really well for the Netherlands at the World Cup and I think Ten Hag has been really interested in him before," Scholes added, before admitting it would be "tough" to do significant business in the New Year.
He said: "There are players out there for sure. January can be a tough window to do business but I hope we can do something and bring in a new centre forward."
