Wayne Rooney reckons it will take three years for Manchester United to challenge at the top again - and urged fans to be patient with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
The former United striker has told his old club they cannot buy their way to success, but must follow Liverpool's example and gradually build a team that can compete with Europe's finest.
Rooney will face his old club on Thursday night when United visit Derby County in the FA Cup fifth round.
It is a good chance to win some silverware for the Red Devils, who have not won the Premier League title since 2013, and trail leaders Liverpool by a staggering 37 points this season.
Rooney said: “It’s going to take time. It’s going to take another two to three years I believe.
“The United fans need to be patient with what is going on and let these players try and prove themselves.
“They need to bring some players in and need to get rid of some players and within two or three years they have to be challenging again.
“If you look at Liverpool and what they’ve done - and Manchester City - you’re not going to buy a team to go and challenge with them.
“Liverpool have built a team. So United have to be bit patient and try and build a team that will be able to challenge these two.”
Rooney says he will definitely celebrate if he scores against his former club on Thursday night.
“Yeah, of course (I will celebrate)," he said. "My time at United, I loved every minute of it.
“But I’m a Derby player now and I want to win with Derby.
“For that 90 minutes or 120 minutes, obviously I want Manchester United to lose. Everyone will understand I want Derby to win this game - and after that I will go back to being a fan and wanting them to win again.”
