Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward says the club has ambitions to bring the very best players to Old Trafford. The repeated failures of the summer led to the charge United had no intention of spending the money.
It is a charge Woodward strenuously denies.
"Yes," he told United We Stand, when asked if United can buy 'top, top' players.
Former assistant-manager Mike Phelan suggested earlier this week Cristiano Ronaldo was on the hit list of potential targets had Sir Alex Ferguson remained.
As Ronaldo has since signed a contract extension at Real Madrid, that possibility now appears remote.
Woodward is not ruling it out completely though.
"Who knows?" he said.
"I don't like the fact that, in the list of 25 players in the Ballon D'Or, we'll have Robin (van Persie) and Wayne (Rooney).
"I don't like the fact there are consistently more players from Spain on that list.
"We, as a club, should be aspiring to have the best players playing for us. We've had that in the past.
"We're in for players if the manager wants to be."
