The worst ever Manchester United signings

Manchester United have bought some terrific players down the years, from Denis Law and Bryan Robson to Roy Keane and Cristiano Ronaldo.

But not every Red Devils acquisition works out, as the following flops prove...

 32. Nikola Jovanovic

Manchester United beat Bayern Munich to the signature of Jovanovic in 1980, which only increased expectations of the Yugoslavia international. The defender had previously shone for Red Star Belgrade, and at £300,000 he didn’t come cheap by the standards of the day.

However, Jovanovic hit the ground trudging at Old Trafford, and by the end of his first season he was struggling for fitness as well as form. He returned to Yugoslavia after just two years in England.

31. Dong Fangzhuo 

Few Manchester United fans had heard of Dong when he arrived at the club from Dalian Shide in 2004. The Chinese striker had to wait for a work permit, so he was immediately loaned to Belgian side Royal Antwerp.

Dong spent two successful seasons with the club, but he failed to crack Old Trafford. After just one Premier League appearance, he returned to former club Dalian in 2008.

30. Neil Whitworth 

Manchester United thought they had unearthed a gem when they signed Whitworth from Wigan in 1990. He made his debut against Southampton after nine months at Old Trafford, but that proved to be his only league outing for the club.

Whitworth embarked on a series of loan spells at Preston, Barnsley, Rotherham and Blackpool before his time on United’s books ended in the summer of 1994.

29. Juan Sebastian Veron 

Alex Ferguson may have branded a group of journalists “idiots” after they questioned Veron, but it’s undeniable that the Argentine didn’t perform as well as expected at Manchester United.

Ferguson admitted that himself, later remarking: “Veron was capable of exceptional football and was talented. But, at times, he found the Premiership a bit difficult.” The former Lazio midfielder made 82 appearances for the club in total.

28. Pat McGibbon

Alex Ferguson plucked McGibbon from Northern Ireland in 1992, with Manchester United paying just £100,000 for his services. The centre-back had to wait three years to make his debut and it didn’t go well: McGibbon was sent off as United lost 3-0 to York in the League Cup.

The defender ended up staying at Old Trafford for five years, but he only managed a solitary Premier League appearance in that time. 

27. Romelu Lukaku

Lukaku had an excellent track record at West Brom and Everton, so it was no surprise when Manchester United parted with an initial £75m to land him in 2017. 

Lukaku scored 27 goals in his debut season, so it may feel harsh to include him on this list. But the Belgium international didn’t live up to expectations at Old Trafford and few tears were shed when he joined Inter in 2019.

26. William Prunier 

 Prunier spent a period playing alongside Zinedine Zidane at Bordeaux, but that’s where the similarities end. The defender spent a brief period at Manchester United in the mid-1990s, but Alex Ferguson didn’t particularly like what he saw.

An injury crisis meant Prunier was drafted into the XI sooner than expected. He played just twice for Ferguson’s side and then rejected the offer of a longer contract.

25. Gabriel Obertan 

Manchester United took a £3m punt on Obertan in 2009, hoping they had uncovered a rough diamond. But the former Bordeaux winger had few moments to remember at Old Trafford, making just 14 Premier League outings (mostly as a substitute) across two campaigns.

Obertan departed for Newcastle in 2011, with United at least able to recoup the fee they paid for him two years earlier.

24. Ron Davies

Manchester United were relegated in 1974/95, finishing 21st in the First Division under Tommy Docherty. They bounced back to the top flight at the first time of asking, but that had nothing to do with their new signing Davies.

The former Southampton and Portsmouth forward was once described as the “finest centre-forward in Europe” by Matt Busby, but he failed to score in eight substitute appearances for United.

23. Mark Bosnich 

Bosnich was signed by Manchester United as a youngster but he sought pastures new in 1991 after failing to break into the first team. But the Australian goalkeeper was re-signed by Alex Ferguson eight years later.

It didn’t go well. In his 2013 autobiography Ferguson branded Bosnich, who was ultimately deemed unfit to be the long-term successor to Peter Schmeichel, a “terrible professional”.

22. David Bellion

Bellion only scored one goal in 20 league matches for Sunderland, but that didn’t stop Manchester United signing him for an initial £2m ahead of the 2003/04 season.

The striker actually had a better scoring record at United than he did at Sunderland, but a return of four goals in 24 Premier League games didn’t exactly set pulses racing. United eventually cut their losses in 2006.

21. Zoran Tosic

Manchester United did a double deal to sign Partizan Belgrade pair Tosic and Adem Ljajic in 2009, but the latter never ended up joining the club due to work permit issues.

Tosic had his application granted, but United must have wished they hadn’t bothered. He failed to make a positive impression at Old Trafford, departing in 2010 having only ever appeared twice in the Premier League.

20. Garry Birtles

A bargain buy for Nottingham Forest, Birtles was anything but for Manchester United. The Red Devils paid £1.25m to prise him away from Forest in 1980, but he failed to score in 25 league appearances for the club in his maiden campaign at Old Trafford.

Birtles found the net 11 times the next season, but he nevertheless went down as a major disappointment. A return to Forest followed in 1982.

19. Karel Poborsky

Poborsky impressed for Czech Republic at Euro 1996, scoring a fantastic goal against Portugal in the semi-finals. It looked like Manchester United had pulled off a coup when they signed him that same summer, but Poborsky didn’t live up to the hype.

Poborsky wasn’t a disaster at Old Trafford but nor did he perform as well as most fans had anticipated. That was in part due to the emergence of David Beckham, who made himself undroppable on the wing.

18. Manucho

Petro Atletico to Manchester United isn’t exactly a well-trodden path - and for good reason. Manucho left the Angolan outfit for the bright lights of Old Trafford in January 2008, putting pen to paper on a three-year deal.

After a loan spell at Panathinaikos, Manucho returned to Manchester at the start of the 2008/09 season. But the striker was out of his depth and his United career ended after just one Premier League appearance.

17. Wilfried Zaha

Alex Ferguson’s final signing as Manchester United boss never got the chance to play under the Scot. Ferguson retired before Zaha rocked up at Old Trafford in summer 2013, having just helped boyhood club Crystal Palace to promotion.

The winger was back in south London a year later, having failed to convince either David Moyes or Louis van Gaal of his worth. Zaha later claimed he was “set up to fail” at United.

16. Henrikh Mkhitaryan 

A key player for Borussia Dortmund under both Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel, Mkhitaryan didn’t cut it at Manchester United. 

He scored a memorable scorpion kick goal against Sunderland and won the EFL Cup and Europa League under Jose Mourinho, but all things considered the Armenia international flopped at Old Trafford. He left for Arsenal in a swap deal involving Alexis Sanchez in January 2018.

15. Owen Hargreaves

Manchester United bought Hargreaves from Bayern Munich for £17m in 2007. He played 34 games in his debut season as the Red Devils won the Premier League title and the Champions League.

But that was as good as it got for Hargreaves. The rest of his United career was marred by multiple injury problems, leading Alex Ferguson to call the midfielder “one of the most disappointing signings” of his 27-year tenure.

14. Diego Forlan

Forlan struck 40 goals in 91 games for Argentinian outfit Independiente, so a move to Europe had become inevitable by 2002. Manchester United spent around £7m to bring him to Old Trafford, but the striker didn’t score in 18 appearances in his first half-season.

Forlan didn’t fare much better in his two full campaigns with the Red Devils, making the net bulge just 17 times in 77 games.

13. Kleberson

After playing an important role in Brazil’s 2002 World Cup triumph, Kleberson had his pick of a host of clubs around Europe. In the end he chose Manchester United, leaving the likes of Barcelona disappointed.

Kleberson got injured early on and he was never able to nail down a place in the XI, making just 20 Premier League appearances across two seasons with the Red Devils. 

12. Morgan Schneiderlin

Schneiderlin was one of the most productive ball-winning midfielders in the Premier League with Southampton, prompting Manchester United to splash out £25m to bring him to Old Trafford in 2015.

But the Frenchman flattered to deceive in the northwest and he was out of the door 18 months later. “When I signed, I wanted to be a legend there. That is why I am mad with myself,” he said in 2023.

11. Radamel Falcao 

One of the deadliest strikers in the world during his time at Atletico Madrid, Falcao joined Monaco in a surprise move in the summer of 2013. A year later he was loaned to Manchester United for a £6m fee and £265,000-a-week wages.

Falcao wasn’t worth the money. His 29 appearances yielded just four goals, as the Colombian struggled to get back to his best after a serious knee injury.

10. Angel Di Maria

One of the best players of his generation, Di Maria looked likely to be a guaranteed success at Manchester United. He arrived having just starred in the Champions League final as Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid.

Di Maria made a bright start to his United career, but things quickly went south. He failed to settle off the pitch and was sold to PSG the following summer.

9. Jadon Sancho

Manchester United targeted Sancho for at least a year before they eventually got their man in the summer of 2021. Hopes were high for the winger, who arrived at Old Trafford for a fee in the region of £73m.

But Sancho struggled to replicate his Borussia Dortmund form in the Premier League and he soon found himself out of the team. In 2023/24, he fell out with Erik ten Hag and was exiled from the first-team squad.

8. Massimo Taibi

One of several goalkeepers who tried and failed to adequately replace Peter Schmeichel, Taibi was the worst of the bunch. A terrible mistake against Southampton proved to be his most memorable contribution between the sticks for Manchester United.

Taibi played just four league games in total before United pulled the plug, allowing the goalkeeper to join Reggina a few months later.

7. Harry Maguire

Maguire’s harshest critics failed to admit that the centre-back made a solid start to life at Manchester United. But a great deal more was expected of a player who cost £80m in the summer of 2019.

Maguire lost his confidence in the 2021/22 campaign and he soon fell down the defensive pecking order. The former Leicester man simply made too many mistakes - and so did United in paying so much for him.

6. Alexis Sanchez

The warning signs were already there in Sanchez’s final few months at Arsenal, but Manchester United decided to bring him to Old Trafford anyway. A swap deal saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan head to the Emirates Stadium while Sanchez moved north in January 2018.

Sanchez managed just five goals in 45 encounters for United, who managed to ship him off to Inter in 2019.

5. Donny van de Beek

A key part of the Ajax team that reached the last four of the Champions League in 2018/19, Donny van de Beek became a Manchester United player in a deal worth an initial £35m in 2020.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer didn’t take to the Dutchman, though, and neither did his former Ajax boss Erik ten Hag. Van de Beek made only six Premier League starts in his first three seasons with United.

4. Ralph Milne

After a brief but brilliant spell with Bristol City, Milne earned a transfer to Manchester United in 1988. He played 29 times in his debut season without impressing much, before being forced out of the team by Lee Sharpe.

Unfortunately for Milne, Alex Ferguson later picked him out as his worst ever signing. “I only paid £170,000 but I still get condemned for it,” the Scot said in 2009.

3. Eric Djemba-Djemba

So bad they named him twice, as the joke goes. Djemba-Djemba was supposed to be the long-term successor to Roy Keane, but it quickly became apparent that he wasn’t up to the job.

The Cameroon international lasted for just 18 months at Old Trafford before being sold to Aston Villa, where he also struggled to establish himself in the starting XI. He did at least win the FA Cup with Manchester United.

2. Paul Pogba

Pogba had his moments at Old Trafford, but for a player of his talent and price tag the Frenchman’s six years with Manchester United were underwhelming. 

Signed for a then-world record fee of £89m, the United academy product returned to the club to much fanfare in 2016. But successive managers failed to get the best out of the midfielder on a consistent basis, and he ended up leaving on a free.

1. Bebe

“I didn't see any videos of him, it's the first time," Alex Ferguson said of the signing of Bebe. “You've got to trust your staff at times and our scout in Portugal was adamant we must do something quickly.”

That proved to be a mistake. It was clear from the get-go that Bebe was not at the required level to play for Manchester United, something he did only twice in the Premier League.