Ryan Giggs claimed he told Manchester United to buy Kylian Mbappe and Gabriel Jesus for a fraction of the price they would now command as emerging global superstars.
Mbappe will become the second most expensive player of all time when his loan at Paris Saint-Germain becomes permanent for a reported €180million at the end of this season, having shot to prominence with a series of electric displays last season that steered Monaco to the Ligue 1 title and Champions League semi-finals.
Jesus is yet to finish on the losing side in the Premier League since arriving at Manchester City from Palmeiras for an initial £27m back in January and the Brazil striker has been an integral part of Pep Guardiola's dominant squad this season.
But Giggs revealed Jesus might have been plying his trade on the other side of Manchester along with Mbappe, had United heeded his advice during his time as assistant to Jose Mourinho's managerial predecessor Louis van Gaal.
"I know what a Manchester United player looks like," he told The Times, reflecting upon an estimated £700m spent in the transfer market since Alex Ferguson left Old Trafford in 2013. "It's not saying it in hindsight, the recruitment hasn't been great.
"I watched Gabriel Jesus play three years ago. I wanted Mbappe for a year. I was watching them with the scout and it was a no-brainer.
"It was just like, 'Get them'. It would have been £5million or something - get them, loan them back. That's where the recruitment could have been better."
Giggs moved on from United following Mourinho's appointment and, despite disagreement on recruitment and over the sales of players such as Danny Welbeck, Jonny Evans and Javier Hernandez, he insists the time spend under Van Gaal proved an invaluable education.
"I know now I wasn't ready when I had those four games in charge at United [as caretaker manager after David Moyes left in 2014], but I'm a lot better qualified to manage now after those two years with Louis," said the 44-year-old, whose managerial ambition is focused upon taking the reins at a top-flight club.
"That was a fantastic experience.
"I do feel I would be more suited to coaching at the top than coaching at the bottom.
"I don't have experience in the lower divisions. It's not where I've worked in my career. I've spent my whole life in the Premier League - not just as a player but as a player-coach and assistant manager."
Nevertheless, Giggs insists his time will not come with Swansea, who parted company with Paul Clement this week.
He was in the running when the Premier League strugglers appointed former USA coach Bob Bradley last season and did not appreciate how his rejection was handled.
"Not for me," he said of the Liberty Stadium post. "It was the way they handled it.
"I spoke to them a couple of times and then heard on Sky Sports three days later that they had appointed Bob Bradley. I don't believe business should be done like that.
"If they had called [and said],'Listen, we've gone with someone more experienced' - then fine. But it didn't happen like that."
