Ralf Rangnick has revealed he had six players on his transfer shortlist during his ill-fated time in charge of Manchester United.
The German was appointed as United's interim manager last December and was expected to start a two-year consultancy gig when a permanent successor was identified at the end of the season. Yet he left the club in May after winning just 11 of his 31 games.
Rangnick had big transfer plans at United but didn't make a single signing. The former Red Bull executive has since revealed which players he wanted to lure to Old Trafford - including Erling Haaland, who's scored 22 goals for local rivals Manchester City this season.
"There was no such [transfer] dossier, and it was never wanted by the club," Rangnick told German outlet BILD. "But even without such a script, it was clear to everyone that there was a need in many areas.
"That’s why we were already discussing players like Josko Gvardiol and Christopher Nkunku from RB Leipzig. Those were names that were realistic. We also talked about Alvaro Morata, Luis Diaz, Dusan Vlahovic and, as I said, Haaland when they were still on the market. But the club decided at that time to rebuild the team under the new coach."
United didn't sign any of those players and allowed Erik ten Hag to rebuild the squad instead. He brought in five stars in the summer - Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen, Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro and Antony - after disagreeing with Rangnick's assessment.
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Rangnick insisted United's squad needed "open heart" surgery after their sixth-placed finish in the Premier League last term. He also suggested the club needed up to 10 new players following their humbling 4-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield in April.
Rangnick said: "You don’t even need glasses to see and analyse where the problems are. Now it’s about how do we solve them? It’s not enough to do some minor amendments cosmetic things. In medicine you would say that this is an operation of the open heart."
When asked about Rangnick's comments, Ten Hag said: "I am still in the process of analysing to set conclusions. I am looking forward to working with these players. The season before, this squad was second in the league, so there is huge potential."
Ten Hag has done well since succeeding Rangnick. Although United are sixth in the Premier League, they are just three points behind Tottenham in third with a game in hand. They are also on the verge of reaching the knockout stages of the Europa League.
United's summer signings have particularly impressed, as Antony has already found the net three times in the Premier League and Martinez was named the club's Player of the Month in August - winning a record number of votes in the fan poll.
Casemiro also showed his quality in the 1-1 draw against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday and Eriksen has been a stellar addition to United's midfield. Malacia, meanwhile, is competing with Luke Shaw for the left-back spot at Old Trafford.
