Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Manchester United had the option to sign Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins and other proven forwards in summer 2023, but decided to focus on Rasmus Hojlund as their priority instead.
Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for the latest edition of his Daily Briefing column, Romano confirmed the reports about Man Utd turning down the chance to sign Watkins, and the Italian journalist has admitted that he thinks it probably wasn’t the best decision.
Although Romano rates Hojlund highly and thinks he should be given time to develop at Old Trafford, he also made it clear that the Denmark international probably would have benefited from having a more experienced striker like Watkins alongside him as well.
Watkins has been superb for Villa, so it’s easy to imagine him having a big impact for a big club like United as well, with many fans likely to be frustrated that the Red Devils decided to go in a different direction.
Ollie Watkins transfer snubbed in favour of Rasmus Hojlund
Discussing this saga, Romano said: “I’ve also been asked about a story involving United and Ollie Watkins in 2023, as it’s been claimed that they decided not to sign the Aston Villa striker, focusing instead on Ramus Hojlund.
“My information is that they had multiple options on the table, not only Watkins, but they consider Hojlund a huge talent for the future with big potential, so their number one choice in 2023 was always Hojlund.
“Was it the right decision? Personally I would not criticise Hojlund – he needs time but he’s talented and a very good player, though it’s probably true that an experienced striker next to him would have helped United.”
United fans will hope Hojlund can still come good, but it was a big gamble to put this much faith, or perhaps pressure, on a relatively inexperienced player, so in future it might be worth pairing a young attacker like this with a more experienced partner, just so there’s someone to rotate with and learn from.
