20 Worst Man Utd Signings in History (Ranked)

Key Takeaways

• Manchester United have made a number of poor signings - particularly in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era.

• Paul Pogba and Donny van de Beek are among the worst value-for-money signings in the Red Devils' history.

• Other big-money flops include Jadon Sancho and Angel Di Maria, with Erik ten Hag also responsible for signing Antony.

Manchester United have one of world football's largest transfer kitties to play about with and have spent plenty of cash to try and achieve their Premier League ambitions. And while it's all well and good having one of the biggest transfer budgets football has to offer, it sometimes doesn't pay dividends.

Since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson from Old Trafford, the Greater Manchester outfit have made plenty of mistakes in the transfer world. However, even the great Scot had his share of blunders.

Ranking factors

This comprehensive review is based on meticulous reporting and is substantiated with stats and figures provided by Transfermarkt, a well-regarded football data site. We will assess each signing's performances, their impact on the club, and the circumstances that led to their unfortunate legacy.

In doing this, we'll consider several factors: performance on the pitch, a player's price tag and the value they delivered, the expectations set out for them, and the wider circumstances surrounding their time at the club. Here are the 20 worst Manchester United transfers of all time.

20 Manucho

Games: 3 - Goals: 0 - Assists: 1

Who could have predicted that Manucho's transfer to Manchester United from Angolan club Petro Atletico had all the chances in the world of ending in failure? Almost anyone. Signed for three seasons in the winter of 2008, the centre-forward ended up playing just three games for the Red Devils, having also spent time on loan at Panathinaikos and Hull City during his adventure at Old Trafford.

Now 41 and with over 50 caps to his name, the striker has not yet hung up his boots, scouring the pitches of Spain's lower divisions after a career rich in clubs and discoveries. He can nevertheless boast a Premier League title to his name. And that's priceless.

19 Gabriel Obertan

Games: 27 - Goals: 1 - Assists: 4

Gabriel Obertan, a young French soccer hopeful, revealed himself to the world in the colors of Girondins de Bordeaux, then at the top of the soccer pyramid in the country. That's why, in 2009, Manchester United decided to try their luck, convinced that they might have one of the future greats in their ranks. But not everything went according to plan for the striker.

In the space of two seasons, he made just 27 appearances (one goal, four assists), most of them as a substitute, but he did take advantage of his time in England to add a league title to his list of honours. In 2011, he finally packed his bags and joined Newcastle, where he enjoyed some rare moments of glory.

18 Ralph Milne

Games: 30 - Goals: 3 - Assists: 0

The harsh words used by Ferguson to describe Ralph Milne's time at Manchester United certainly reflect the disappointment caused by his compatriot. Having arrived from Bristol City in 1988, the Scottish midfielder was keen to take his soccer career to the next level. A mission that soon turned out to be a failure.

Scoring just three goals in his first season at Old Trafford, the left-sided midfielder failed to convince his manager, who eventually preferred him to full-back Lee Sharpe as the months wore on. On loan to West Ham United in 1990, he left the Mancunian club for good the following year, mentally shaken by the failure he had just suffered.

17 Owen Hargreaves

Games: 39 - Goals: 2 - Assists: 2

It may be hard to imagine that a player with over 200 appearances for a club of Bayern Munich's stature could turn out to be a flop. Yet such is the case with Owen Hargreaves. Transferred from the German club to Manchester United in 2007, the defensive midfielder never convinced with a team that went on to win the Premier League and Champions League the following season.

In the space of four years, the Calgary-born player played just 39 games, 34 of them in his first season, and suffered numerous injuries of varying severity throughout his time with the Red Devils. A transfer that Ferguson would even describe as one of the most disappointing of his coaching career. That's saying a lot.

16 Angel Di Maria

Games: 32 - Goals: 4 - Assists: 12

Joining from Real Madrid in the summer of 2014, the Argentine was Louis van Gaal's marquee signing as the club looked to move past their Moyes misery. However, the Argentine winger struggled to adapt to life in England and the rough and tough nature of the Premier League. Combine this with the weight of being the club's new star, and it all went wrong for Angel Di Maria.

Di Maria also, unfortunately, had his house burgled early on in his Red Devils career, which seemed to leave an even more sour taste in his mouth, unsurprisingly. One season was all it took for Di Maria to find a way out of Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain offered him an escape route in 2015 after a trophyless season.

15 Bebe

Games: 7 - Goals: 2 - Assists: 0

Uncharacteristically, Sir Alex Ferguson chose to take a punt on the unproven Portuguese ace Bebe in 2010, handing Vitoria de Guimaraes £7.4 million for the forward. On the recommendation of his Portuguese assistant Carlos Queiroz, Ferguson pushed through on one of the most bizarre transfer stories the club has seen in recent times.

The deal was subsequently investigated by Portuguese authorities on allegations of corruption, adding further questionable vibes to the whole scenario. Bebe did manage to appear seven times for the Red Devils. However, his performances left much to be desired and he was subsequently shipped off to Benfica in 2014.

14 Eric Djemba-Djemba

Games: 39 - Goals: 2 - Assists: 2

Signed and tasked with the job of taking over from captain Roy Keane in the centre of the park for Manchester United, Eric Djemba-Djemba arrived from Nantes for £3.5 million in 2003. It was a tough ask for him to take over the reins from the Irishman and a task that he ultimately failed miserably in doing.

In the grand scheme of things, splashing out £3.5 million doesn't seem like the worst of mistakes, but his generally poor play and lack of desire made fans question who had even scouted him. Two years later, United called it quits with Djemba-Djemba and he moved to Villa Park to play for Aston Villa. Funnily enough, things didn't go well there either.

13 Memphis Depay

Games: 53 - Goals: 7 - Assists: 6

Memphis Depay arrived from PSV in 2015 for £25 million and the hype and expectation surrounding the skilful Dutchman was massive. Adding to the already massive weight on Depay's shoulders was the burden of carrying the club's iconic number seven on his back. Something which proved to be too heavy for him as he became one of the worst players to ever don the famous jersey.

Memphis only managed to deliver two goals in his first Premier League season, and it was clear that the Old Trafford move had come far too early for him. Unfortunately, this transfer saga also has a sad ending. Depay was sent packing to Lyon in 2017 with the club only managing to capture £15 million for the winger.

12 Diego Forlán

Games: 97 - Goals: 17 - Assists: 9

A move to an elite European outfit seemed inevitable after Diego Forlan after he struck an impressive tally of 40 goals in 91 games for Independiente. Money wise, it only cost £7 million for his services back in 2002 but it's fair to say that what could have been a masterstroke, instead became a switch to forget.

Failing to score in his first 18 appearances set him up for failure - and fail he did in his first two full campaigns in England, hitting the back of the net on just 17 occasions in 77 games. A sorry transfer for all those involved and the Uruguayan striker left for the basking sun of Spain as he signed for Villarreal.

11 Wilfried Zaha

Games: 4 - Goals: 0 - Assists: 0

Interestingly, despite being Sir Alex Ferguson's final signing as United boss, Wilfried Zaha never played under the intimidating Scotsman. In fairness, the 31-cap Ivory Coast international struggled to find game time under any of the coaches at the club: David Moyes and Louis van Gaal included.

The winger returned to boyhood club Crystal Palace shortly after and he went on to become a legend in the colours of the south London club, having one of the best second spell at club level. Potentially more suited to being a big fish in a smaller pond, Zaha later claimed he was "set up to fail" at United after he always struggled to find his feet.

10 Radamel Falcao

Games: 29 - Goals: 4 - Assists: 5

He was one of the most fearsome forwards during his time at Atletico Madrid, but when Manchester United acquired Radamel Falcao on loan from AS Monaco he was well past his sell-by date. Times were tough at Old Trafford and with the club looking for some answers post-Sir Alex Ferguson, they took a punt on the veteran forward with a £6 million loan deal in 2014.

Four league goals were all the striker could muster during his time in Manchester and the excitement following his arrival quickly faded. Obviously, after this poor showing, the Red Devils chose not to pursue a permanent deal for the Colombian, saving themselves £43.5 million in the process and is also considered one of the worst signings of the Glazer era.

9 Kleberson

Games: 30 - Goals: 2 - Assists: 5

The Atletico Paranaense man was signed alongside Cristiano Ronaldo for £6.5 million back in 2003 after he was part of the World Cup-winning Brazil squad. As such, fans expected they were getting an elite maestro in the middle of the park. Nevertheless, Kleberson, despite his hype, failed to meet those expectations.

Injuries hounded the Brazilian at Old Trafford like a bad smell, and this was ultimately his real downfall, rather than his lack of talent. With no real run of games under his belt, Kleberson's time at Manchester United ended quite differently from his signing day partner Cristiano.

8 Alexis Sanchez

Games: 45 - Goals: 5 - Assists: 9

Swapped with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Alexis Sanchez arrived at Manchester United from Premier League rivals Arsenal in 2018 with the English top flight at his feet. However, the scintillating form he showed at the Emirates Stadium was never repeated for the Red Devils and his much-anticipated move was anticlimactic, to say the least.

Three Premier League goals during his 18-month stint at the club were awful returns for the Chilean, and he was allowed to leave on loan to Inter Milan before joining them permanently in 2020. We'll never know what quite went wrong for Sanchez at United, but this is one of the club's worst transfer blunders in recent history.

7 Juan Sebastian Veron

Games: 82 - Goals: 11 - Assists: 15

Joining from Italian outfit Lazio for £28 million in 2001, a hefty fee in those days, the Argentine was expected to play a huge role at Old Trafford. Juan Sebastian Veron was as classy as they come, but his style and elegant finesse didn't quite suit the rough and tough Premier League - and he struggled to make much impact.

Seven goals in 57 Premier League games tells you all you need to know, and much more was expected from a player of his calibre and price tag. Two years later, Veron was signed by Chelsea, ending his disappointing stint at United. This one is more of a 'what could have been' kind of transfer, with Veron just one of many players to suffer a downturn in form after moving to the Theatre of Dreams.

6 Jadon Sancho

Games: 82 - Goals: 12 - Assists: 6

Jadon Sancho tipped up to Old Trafford with ample fanfare on the back of his blistering Borussia Dortmund playing days - a stint that saw him score 50 goals and provide 64 assists in a total of 137 outings. His time spent at United has not quite as fruitful, however, which is a shame given how hard the club pushed for his signature for so long.

Struggling to emulate his Bundesliga form in arguably the toughest league in the world, he soon found himself becoming an eternal substitute, sharply falling down Ten Hag's pecking order in his winger selection. He flourished again during the 2023-24 season back at Dortmund, helping the German club reach the Champions League final, but it seems unlikely that he'll ever work under Ten Hag again.

5 Morgan Schneiderlin

Games: 47 - Goals: 1 - Assists: 1

If you'd forgotten this man ever put on a Manchester United shirt, we couldn't blame you. Morgan Schneiderlin's Old Trafford career was as dull and uneventful as they come. The Frenchman made 32 appearances in the Premier League for United during his 18-month stint with the club, scoring only once and providing zero assists.

It's not the kind of statistics you want from a player you have forked out £25 million on and the midfielder will go down as one of the club's strangest purchases over the years. Schneiderlin was sent to Goodison Park, a level where his footballing talents probably belonged, and his swansong story of a big move to Manchester came crashing down.

4 Donny van de Beek

Games: 62 - Goals: 2 - Assists: 2

Once upon a time, Donny van de Beek was considered one of football's hottest properties. Playing under Erik ten Hag's watch in an imperious Ajax side, the central midfielder was integral to the Eredivisie giants reaching the 2018-19 Champions League semi-finals.

He cost the Red Devils £35million back in 2020, but nobody could foresee how poorly his stint in the English top flight would unravel, with him racking up a mere 62 appearances, two goals and two assists in that time. Van de Beek has clearly played his last game for United, and is on the brink of joining Spanish side Girona on a permanent transfer.

Related
Jadon Sancho, Noni Madueke and Kalvin Phillips all feature on the list of Premier League stars that are vying for a January move...

3 Harry Maguire

Games: 214 l Goals: 12 l Assists: 8

Harry Maguire has all the makings of an endearing player, but perhaps he was never really good enough to play for Manchester United - and it is from this point that the main criticisms of him have emerged. The central defender arrived from Leicester City in the summer of 2019 for the eye-watering sum of £80m, and made a solid first impression. But as the months went by, his limitations became apparent, even as he was eventually promoted to captain. This was undoubtedly too heavy a burden for the Englishman, who has cost his team many points in recent seasons.

2 Antony

Games: 87 - Goals: 12 - Assists: 5

Erik ten Hag opted to snare his former winger Antony from Ajax as he looked to inject another layer of possibility to his attack. That, he hasn't. Too predictable to become a reliable asset for his side, with him flattering to deceive the majority of the time.

The Brazilian - who plundered 24 goals and 22 assists in 82 games for his previous employers - has frustrated fans and pundits alike with his inconsistency and questionable temperament. The worst bit? He cost an eye-watering £86 million. With such a hefty outlay, you'd expect far more bang for your buck - wouldn't you?

1 Paul Pogba

Games: 233 - Goals: 39 - Assists: 51

Four years after leaving Manchester United, Paul Pogba - labelled the club's biggest ever flop - decided to make a triumphant return after some career-best campaigns in Italy with Juventus. Such was his form at the time, United forked out £89 million for his services, hoping the maestro could turn around the club's torrid form since the departure of Sir Alex.

Six years of ups and plenty of downs followed and Pogba failed to show any of the consistency and class that he demonstrated during his time in the Italian top flight. A free transfer back to Juventus in 2022 is how this one ended and the injury-plagued Pogba never repaid the Red Devils for that £89 million spent on him.