Manchester United initially targeted Harry Kane, Randal Kolo Muani and Victor Osimhen before settling on Rasmus Hojlund as their No. 9, according to Benni McCarthy.

With Erik ten Hag at the helm, the Red Devils sealed a £72million deal for Atalanta’s prodigious Danish forward Hojlund in August 2023. While his sole season in the Serie A left room for improvement, with just nine league goals in 32 matches, it was hoped that the 22-year-old would lead the Old Trafford line for years to come.

However, though Hojlund’s debut campaign saw him notch 16 goals in all competitions, this current season has been rather dismal, and the marksman has only mustered two league goals. Now, it has been revealed that whilst Hojlund was being scouted by the club, three other bigger-name strikers were being courted in Kane, Kolo Muani and Osimhen.

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“In the summer of 2023, Harry Kane was our No. 1 target,” McCarthy, who left United as a coach in 2024, exclusively told Ladbrokes at the launch of Gaffer of all Accas.

“Kane was the prime target, but obviously, the price tag was an issue. Because he would have been leaving Spurs for United, a few extra million pounds were added on to the to the price tag, which, you know, for a 30-year-old wasn’t seen to be wise.

“But for £100million, if you look at it now, you’d say that it would have been well worth it because he's gone to Bayern and he's still producing, he's still scoring. So you think we should have just bitten the bullet and got Harry Kane and then also tried to invest in Rasmus Hojlund.

“That would have been the best thing for Rasmus if he had if he had someone like Harry Kane involved. So, yeah, Harry Kane was Erik’s No. 1 target. Erik really wanted him. Kolo Muani was also very high on that list. Victor Osimhen was also on that list. But I felt that if you're going to want to spend that kind of money - £100million plus - then you want a complete package.

“Harry Kane, for me, was the complete package. But unfortunately, the club didn't see it that way. They looked at it as Rasmus Hojlund, in the long run would be a more prized asset than investing in both Rasmus and Harry Kane. So we stopped pursuing Kane, and we ended up getting just Rasmus.”

Since Hojlund’s arrival, Kane jumped the Tottenham ship for Bayern Munich and has tallied a record-breaking and impressive 73 goals in just 75 games for the German outfit.

Osimhen left Napoli in the summer for Galatasaray on loan, where he has scored 19 goals in 24 games. Kolo Muani has also been on the move, leaving Eintracht Frankfurt for PSG and subsequently leaving Paris for Juventus in January, where he has impressed in his fleeting time there.

“I think they could have gone for someone else, like a player who was suggested when I was there: Randal Kolo Muani,” McCarthy continued. “Muani is only 26, but he's vastly experienced. He's played in the World Cup final.

"He's got that aura about him where he also wants to achieve things. I thought he would have been someone who would have been really good for Man United because he's also not shy about working hard. He works tirelessly, and he knows where the goal is. So he would have been an ideal player.”