Sir Alex Ferguson's former assistant Rene Meulensteen has brutally branded Manchester United's transfer strategy "a big mess" - and urged PSV Eindhoven star Cody Gakpo to snub a move to Old Trafford.
Meulensteen was one of Ferguson's trusted lieutenants and won three Premier League titles during his six-year stint coaching United's first-team. But the club have failed to replicate those feats in recent years, and the Dutchman has been less than impressed with United's transfer dealings under Erik ten Hag.
The Dutchman has captured Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen, Lisandro Martinez and Casemiro so far this summer, however, United have also been linked with some rather bizarre transfer targets and missed out on a raft of high-profile names.
Ten Hag has targeted a number of Eredivisie players since arriving at Old Trafford, with Ajax forward Antony the latest player to be extensively linked with a move to Manchester.
However, Gakpo, who enjoyed a stunning campaign for PSV last year, is also on United's radar. And the club could firm up their interest in the 23-year-old if a deal for Antony fails to materialise before the September 1 deadline.
But Meulensteen believes that Gakpo should shun a move at Old Trafford as he would be better off staying with PSV. Meulensteen told Algemeen Dagblad : " Manchester United ’s transfer policy is a big mess. They’ve been chasing Frenkie de Jong for so long, that didn’t go through. Then they wanted Adrien Rabiot, that didn’t work either. Marko Arnautovic didn’t either.
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"They are still trying to get Antony and Cody Gakpo, but I also have my doubts about that. Those guys are fantastic in the Eredivisie, but that is no guarantee that they can continuously make a difference here.
"If I were Gakpo, I would say, 'thank you for the honour but I’m staying with PSV'. I would say to him: 'Boy, there are more clubs coming… at PSV you had the chance to play Champions League, you’re on that [path]'. At the moment I’m not sure about Manchester United."
It is believed that Gakpo would be available for far less than the reported €100million (£84.3m) sum that Ajax are demanding for Antony, who is desperate to force through a move before next week's transfer deadline.
The Athletic claimed earlier this week that some sources at the club felt that there was a chance United may be able to sign both Gakpo and Antony in the coming days. However, it remains to be seen if that will come to fruition as a deal for Antony edges closer.
