Transfer News: Giggs backs Cole Palmer as the creative fix Manchester United desperately need
Transfer news: Speaking on the Rio Ferdinand Presents YouTube channel, Ryan Giggs made a strong case for Manchester United to go after Chelsea attacker Cole Palmer this summer, sparking one of the biggest talking points of the transfer window. The former United captain pointed out that the 24-year-old is a Manchester native and highlighted a major issue with the current squad: they are completely reliant on Bruno Fernandes to create chances.
Giggs explained that United need three or four players who can make things happen in attack, rather than putting it all on one person. He thinks Palmer could play on the right wing, giving Michael Carrick’s team some much-needed variety upfront.
United see Palmer as the perfect signing to add goals and creativity before the 2026/27 season starts, and director of football Jason Wilcox is personally driving the interest. However, Chelsea’s BlueCo ownership has zero interest in selling their star to a rival, and Palmer himself has already played down any talk of leaving Stamford Bridge.
Giggs said: “Yeah, he would, Manchester lad. Where would he play with obviously Bruno [Fernandes] at No.10? He could play off the right possibly. But yeah, we talk about [Rasmus] Hojlund and [Benjamin] Sesko, it’s only really Bruno who is creating things time and time again.
What if Bruno has a bad day or is injured? You need three or four players in your squad who can make things happen for these players to put the ball in the back of the net.”
Does Palmer’s dip in form make this transfer news more complicated than Giggs suggests?
Palmer’s stats show he is still producing, but he is clearly going through a rough patch. Scoring nine league goals in 24 games and averaging a goal involvement every other match is respectable, but his performances have dropped off significantly during a brutal run where Chelsea lost six league games in a row.
His non-penalty xG of 0.30 and xA of 0.15 per 90 minutes show he isn’t creating as much as people think. From Chelsea‘s perspective, selling their biggest star during a dip in form would look like panic. For United, spending a reported £150m on a player who averages 1.21 key passes per game, which is good, but not world-class, makes little sense, especially since the club have already decided that the Englishman isn’t their main priority this summer.
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Why Giggs is right about the bigger issue even if Palmer is not the answer?
Even if Palmer isn’t the right option, Giggs is spot on about Manchester United’s main problem. Take Fernandes out of the equation, and United have almost no creativity left in the squad. Benjamin Šeško desperately need service, and no one else is stepping up to provide it.
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Even during this inconsistent spell, Palmer still completes 85% of his passes and ranks in the top 85th percentile for non-penalty xG among Premier League players. Whether United actually chase this transfer or look somewhere else, the underlying issue Giggs brought up isn’t going away.
