Manchester United legend Gary Neville says Ole Gunnar Solskjaer must copy Liverpool by creating a solid spine through his team.

The Red Devils have a world-class goalkeeper in David De Gea - albeit he has been out of form this season - as well as two record signings in Paul Pogba and record-signing Harry Maguire.

And Neville thinks it is imperative to United's progress that they solidify the centre of their team, just as Champions League winners Liverpool have done in recent seasons.

Speaking about United's win over Leicester on Saturday, Neville said: "The problem with United's team is not the five young players on the pitch. The spine of the team is [David] De Gea, [Victor] Lindelof, [Harry] Maguire, [Nemanja] Matic, [Ashley] Young, [Juan] Mata. All the young players have massive potential.

"Manchester United somehow have got to find a spine. All championship winning teams have strong spines.

"Liverpool's spine has come from [Virgil] Van Dijk at £75million, [Roberto] Firmino's £30million, Alisson, a fantastic goalkeeper, and Fabinho. The recruitment has got to be good to support these players.

"Liverpool bought Van Dijk, Fabinho and Alisson and they were transformed overnight. Manchester United get the right three players in that group and they won't be far away."