After 30 years since the inauguration of the Premier League, it’s inevitable that a club makes some bad signings, but Manchester United in particular, are renowned for their poor decision making in the transfer market. This has been exemplified further after the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson and the decade of failure since then.
Therefore, in this article, I am going to rank my top 10 worst Manchester United signings in the Premier League after the departure of Ferguson.
10th – Donny van de Beek
The Dutch midfielder joined United having ranked 28th in the Ballon d’Or nominations just a couple years prior. However, since moving to Manchester, Van de Beek has failed to nail down a starting position under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Ralf Rangnick and now even his former Ajax boss Erik ten Hag.
The Dutchman has failed to adapt to the physicality needed for English football and thus has fallen way short of expectations and the £34.6m initial price tag.
9th – Fred
The Brazilian departed United in the summer leaving fans with some fond memories but an overall feeling of disappointment. Fred brought great tenacity and energy which United were lacking but his ability on the ball significantly let him down and turned him into a liability in some games.
However, he had great moments, particularly in his phenomenal performance against Barcelona at the Camp Nou which was topped off with a goal. Ultimately, with the initial fee of around £52m for the Brazilian, this will go down as a failed signing.
8th – Jadon Sancho
This one could come back to bite me, but with Sancho training with the reserves and completely out of favour with the manager, it seems unlikely. The English winger signed as one of the worlds best young talents from Borussia Dortmund in 2021. Sancho recorded 50 goals and 64 assists in 137 appearances for Dortmund. Thus, when he joined, expectations were incredibly high.
Fans were hoping for an electric winger who would consistently beat a man, not too dissimilar to a young Cristiano Ronaldo many years back. However, this hasn’t been the case. Sancho has shown glimpses of quality but has managed just 12 goals and six assists in 82 appearances for the red devils. Thus, with the enormous expectations and huge £73m transfer fee, this will go down as another major failed signing.
7th – Romelu Lukaku
Despite the 42 goals and 13 assists the Belgium international scored whilst playing at the ‘theatre of dreams’, Lukaku never became the centre forward so many dreamed he’d be. The current Roma striker left Everton to join United as one of the best strikers in the Premier League for a huge £75m. In his first season in Manchester, Lukaku hit the ground running scoring 27 goals which included 16 in the Premier League.
However, his second season wasn’t as successful, scoring only 12 league goals, which for United’s leading striker, is severely below par. Whilst managing United, Mourinho backed Lukaku, but after the Portuguese’s sacking and the arrival of Solskjaer, he didn’t feature as much and subsequently left in the summer. After nine goals in 10 games to start his United career off, Lukaku never delivered to that level again.
6th – Memphis Depay
Although his £31m price tag is significantly lower than many others on this list, it’s the unreached potential which puts him sixth. Memphis joined as an incredibly big prospect who was being compared to a young Cristiano Ronaldo. Before his arrival at Old Trafford, he scored 22 league goals in the Eredivisie.
However, like so many players, Memphis wasn’t able to reproduce these numbers in English football. The Dutch striker scored just two Premier League goals in the 33 league appearances he made. He was shipped off to Lyon after just 18 disappointing months at the club.
5th – Paul Pogba
This is arguably the most controversial on this list. But Pogba signing for a world record transfer fee of £89m in 2016 and leaving for free six years after he joined, without winning the Premier League or Champions League, means he has to be in this list. The Frenchman had remarkable talent and showed glimpses of quality no one in the world had.
Unfortunately for Pogba and United, he wasn’t consistent. He had better seasons, scoring 13 goals and assisting nine in 35 Premier League games in 2015/16, but in many others, he underperformed. Pogba joined United with the world at his feet and expectations he could be one of the greatest midfielders of all time, but left Manchester with both him and the fans disappointed.
4th – Radamel Falcao
Falcao joined United in 2014 for a £6m season long loan as a world class striker. The Colombian had scored 72 goals in 86 appearances for Porto, then 70 goals in 91 appearances for Atletico Madrid before joining Monaco for £50m in 2014. Therefore, when Falcao scored just four goals in 29 appearances for United, it was a tremendous disappointment.
An attacking trio of Falcao, Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie, became nothing more than a fantasy. A dream signing that soon turned into a nightmare.
3rd – Angel Di Maria
Pretty much everything was wrong with this signing. Di Maria openly admitted he never wanted to leave Real Madrid. He also said he had problems with thecoach Louis van Gaal, he cost a huge £59.7m which was a British transfer record at the time. His family failed to adapt, and he struggled on the pitch.
The Argentinian scored three goals in his year at the club, which included a wonder chip against Leicester City. Furthermore, he assisted 10 but never truly played to the level expected. With the fabled number seven, he was yet another man who failed to live up to the history of that number.
2nd – Harry Maguire
Maguire served United initially well in his first couple seasons, but his form took a drastic downward turn as the English international became the centre to a lot of hate and abuse. Whilst in many cases Maguire has become a sort of scapegoat, and doesn’t deserve the negativity towards him, it would be wrong to suggest his time at United has been a success. His captaincy was always questioned, and his performances never delivered to the level a United captain should.
If Maguire was £20m, it would have been a completely different story for him at United, but unfortunately, the British record £80m paid for Maguire caused ridiculous scrutiny on him. Ultimately, Maguire was never able to be that commanding Virgil van Dijk level defender United needed and so with his huge price tag, it’s a major fail.
1st – Alexis Sanchez
We all knew he’d be first. Its potentially even the worst transfer deal ever. Sanchez leaving Arsenal in a swap with Henrik Mkhitaryan going the other way. What could possibly go wrong? Everything! From the huge wages Sanchez was on, to his incredibly underwhelming performances, it was a disaster for everyone involved.
The Chilean had scored 24 goals assisting 10 just two seasons before his arrival at United. Whereas, whilst in Manchester, Sanchez scored just three Premier League goals and was soon sold after falling out of favour at the club.
Honorable mentions
Eric Bailly
The defenders consistent injury problems and reckless defending made him a huge liability at the club. The Ivory Coast defender had a promising start at the club but has had countless injuries since then. After Maguire and Victor Lindelof became the cemented centre half partnership, Bailly was never able to pave his way consistently back into starting 11 selection. A once promising, but disappointing signing.
Antony Martial
Joining for a huge £36m at just 19 years old, Martial had to impress. The Frenchman did, just not consistently enough. Despite scoring a famous wondergoal on his debut against Liverpool, Martial never nailed down the centre forward spot for future years and was soon pushed out onto the left wing before eventually becoming the striker again. In recent years injuries and poor finishing has plagued Martial with him becoming a sellable asset now. Having won the golden boy in 2015, Martial never became the player people hoped.
Wout Weghorst
Signed as an emergency loan due to injuries, expectations weren’t outstanding but the Dutchman’s inability to score made him a major liability for United. He gave it his all but Weghorst missed countless big chances for United. He failed to score in all 17 Premier League games and scored just twice in the nine games of the EFL Cup and Europa League combined. He left me astounded as to how he missed when I sat behind the goal in Old Trafford. A unique attribute some might say. Ultimately, a loan fans will want to soon forget.