Manchester United’s summer transfer business is once again under heavy criticism. Despite spending almost £200 million on new attacking players, former club legend Nicky Butt has warned the Red Devils that they may have made the same mistake Arsenal did in their hunt for a striker.
Both United and Arsenal were linked with Aston Villa star Ollie Watkins this summer. But instead of going for the proven Premier League forward, United signed Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig, while Arsenal brought in Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting Lisbon.
Butt, who lifted six Premier League titles with Sir Alex Ferguson’s United, is far from convinced. Speaking to BetMGM, he admitted he fears the club may have repeated the same missteps made when they signed Rasmus Højlund last season.
“I know Cunha has done really well over the last couple of seasons but I would really like an experienced striker,” Butt said.
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“I hope I’m wrong but I really hope they aren’t making the same mistakes with Sesko as they did with Rasmus [Højlund].”
Butt’s main worry is simple: Sesko has no Premier League experience. And for a club like Manchester United, that gamble can be costly.
“A young player coming in with no Premier League experience, it just feels like history repeating itself,” Butt warned.
He then revealed the striker he believes United should have bought.
“Honestly, for what it would have cost, I would have gone and brought in someone like Ollie Watkins, someone to help and pull the young strikers out of a bad patch.”
Watkins has been one of the most reliable forwards in English football. Since joining Aston Villa, he has scored double figures in all five of his Premier League seasons. For Butt, that kind of track record was exactly what United needed.
He explained that young strikers often go through difficult spells, and without an experienced forward to rotate with, they are left under immense pressure.
“When young players are just coming into the club, when the onus is on them to score goals, if they’re having a few bad games they have to have the safety net of being pulled out of the firing line,” Butt added.
“Ollie Watkins, or someone like that, would be who I would have been looking to bring in.”
Butt is not the only former legend pointing to Watkins as the biggest transfer miss of the summer. Arsenal legend Tony Adams recently admitted that he too would have preferred the Villa striker over the Gunners’ big-money signing, Viktor Gyokeres.
Speaking during a Q&A for Indo Sport, Adams was asked for his views on Gyokeres. His response was blunt:
“I don’t know yet. He’s not tried and tested. I would have liked to have seen them get Ollie Watkins to be honest with you. He’s a Gooner, he might have given us a year and we might have won the title.”
Adams’ comments highlight a wider frustration among Arsenal fans who feel the club missed an opportunity to sign a ready-made Premier League striker.
But the Arsenal icon didn’t stop there. He also shared doubts about Mikel Arteta’s leadership decisions, particularly regarding the captaincy of Martin Ødegaard.
“I think he’s got a really big call to make this year and, for me, he hasn’t done it and the call is to make Declan Rice captain,” Adams said. “Declan is my kind of captain and it might free up Ødegaard to play with a bit more freedom because he had a very average season last year.”
Adams reflected on his own career experiences to stress the importance of tough managerial decisions.
“Sometimes when you’ve got the main man and the captain of the club… big managers have to make bold calls,” Adams explained. “I think Rice is an Arsenal leader. He’s good in the dressing room, around the training camp, he’s got standards, he’s got principles. He’s a proper player, a proper captain.”
The former Gunners skipper even compared Arteta’s hesitation to past decisions by managers like Terry Venables and Glenn Hoddle, who weren’t afraid to switch captains to elevate their teams.
But the biggest echo between Adams and Butt is clear: both Arsenal and Manchester United passed on Ollie Watkins, and both may regret it.
For now, Aston Villa fans are smiling. Watkins remains their talisman, while two of England’s biggest clubs are left wondering if they missed the striker who could have transformed their seasons.
The question is: will Sesko and Gyokeres prove the doubters wrong, or will history show that Adams and Butt were right all along?
