Ray Wilkins: Angel Di Maria Signing Shows Manchester United are Desperate

Former Chelsea assistant manager Ray Wilkins says Manchester United's move in signing Angel Di Maria shows the Red Devils are desperate as they are spending heavily in completing the deal for the winger.

The Argentine international's services are no longer required at the Spanish capital club and they are looking to offload him in the ongoing transfer window. United have failed to win their first two league games of the season under Louis van Gaal.

It is believed that United are set to break the British record transfer fee in bringing Di Maria to Old Trafford from the 10-time European champions.

Wilkins, who was at United from 1979-84 as a midfielder believes the Red Devils will end up spending heavily on other players, if they decide to further add new faces to the squad before deadline day.

"At £75million, it seems a lot of money to me. It's quite sad when one club - and I hate using the word regarding Manchester United - becomes so desperate that the transfer fee will be elevated massively," Wilkins told talkSPORT.

"This is one case where, all of a sudden, it goes from £50m on Friday to another half of that. So we've gone to £75m for a player that can't get in the first team at Real Madrid."

"He's extremely talented, but I'm worried about the money. They have to bring a few more in and it could spiral and spiral. This is the second year when they haven't worked quick enough in the transfer market," the former United midfielder added.

Meanwhile, United striker Robin van Persie remains confident that his side will bounce back despite their failure to win a single competitive game in the league this season.

United drew 1-1 against Sunderland in their latest fixture, which comes after their 1-2 opening day defeat at the hands of Swansea City at Old Trafford.

"We dropped two points today. Clearly we came here to win, and if you go in front after 15 minutes or so, we should have at least held on to that for longer," Van Persie told United's official website.

"We were a bit too sloppy in possession, and in that sense we made it too hard for ourselves. We've played two games and only picked up one point, we would have loved to have got six points but it didn't happen, so we have to bounce back."