Man United told the midfielder they should have signed instead of Mason Mount

Manchester United should have signed James Maddison this summer instead of Mason Mount to strengthen their midfield options - according to former Reds defender Paul Parker.

United paid Chelsea an initial £55m for Mount's services to sign the midfielder this summer, with the 24-year-old having entered the final 12 months of his deal at Stamford Bridge.

So far, Mount is yet to have a real impact at Old Trafford, having made only two appearances so far for Erik ten Hag's side and yet to find the back of the net or notch an assist.

And the midfielder is currently out of action having picked up a hamstring injury which could rule him out for up to six weeks.

With Mount not having pulled up trees after his move to United, the same cannot be said for Maddison, who has impressed for Spurs after his summer move from relegated Leicester City.

Spurs paid a reported £40m for Maddison - some £15m less than what United did for Mount - and former Old Trafford defender Parker feels his old club ought to have gone for the former instead of the latter this summer.

Speaking to Bettors, Parker said: "Manchester United should have spent the Mason Mount money on James Maddison. I’ve never been too sure on Maddison because of his temperament and he picks up a lot of injuries.

“His performances so far suggest that Maddison would have been the right player to buy.

Getty)

“I personally wasn't behind buying Mount. He isn’t what Manchester United needs. They needed somebody to come in and be like Eriksen.

"Maddison is like Eriksen when he was at Tottenham.. A wonderful player to watch. One of the best foreign players to come to the Premier League in recent times. One of the top players to come from Europe.

"Maddison in that role? Yes. You can leave Eriksen on the bench and Maddison would play that role.

“Casemiro is missing someone next to him that can pass the ball. The ball isn’t being passed. It’s being given away cheaply.

‘Casemiro was allowed to be more adventurous last season and that’s because he had someone like Eriksen to keep possession and make sure it’s kept. Someone that can receive the ball in tight areas.

“You’ve got someone in Mount who runs around a lot and someone in Fernandes who is erratic and displays his frustration and throws his hands in the air rather than chase back.”