"Correct" post-Fergie transfers that turned out to be poor

[Scandi Red]

We have signed many duds over the last 10 years, but every once in a while we would make a signing that was considered both good and safe by the majority. These players were supposed to would jump straight into the starting eleven and almost immediately make a positive impact. And they would keep making a positive impact for years to come. These are the so-called "correct" transfers.

But as we all know (probably better than anyone now to be honest) even safe bets don't always turn out the way you think. In our case I would even say that these "correct" transfers very rarely work out. Let's start by naming them. Spoiler alert: what the hell, Mourinho?

Di Maria
We signed a 24 year old Real Madrid superstar! I almost had to pinch myself to believe it was happening. But we all know how this turned out...

Pogba
Maybe controversial as he wasn't as bad as the rest of the players on this list. But considering the price, attitude, inconsistency and injuries near the end, I don't think that this transfer should be considered a success.

Mkhitaryan
Had an amazing season at Dortmund, played in a position we needed to strengthen and wasn't even that expensive. Turned out to be awful for us.

Sanchez
Was this a conspiracy? Perhaps revenge for RVP? We're talking about an explosive, PL proven, Arsenal star who City also reportedly wanted to sign, who then turned to shit overnight. And his wages were through the roof!

Lukaku
Was probably considered the best striker on the market that we realistically could hope to sign that summer. He wasn't awful per se, but he never justified his price tag.

Maguire
He was first on many fans' CB wish list that summer. Both Mourinho and Pep reportedly wanted to sign him too, but the price tag was of course a big talking point. He has been particularly poor since the middle of 2021 and most fans seem to have wanted him out since.

Sancho
Probably the biggest disappointment on the list all things considered, even though he's not as poor as Sanchez for instance. Sancho was the right profile and ticked pretty much every box. The optimism surrounding him was as high as with the Pogba signing, but the former can actually only dream of reaching that level for us.


Have I forgotten someone? Am I too harsh on some of these players or is it deserved?

PS:
I did not include Antony despite his crazy price tag because I don't think he fits the "correct transfer" description. He was considered an expensive risk by most people. It's kind of the same story with Martial.

 

[Raw]

Honestly thought Schneiderlin was great business and I was ecstatic that we finally had a long term defensive midfielder.

 

[AnotherLondonManc]

Lindelof and Bailly looked like solid purchases at the time. The former has become a useful squad player but was maligned for much of his career with us.

Falcao and Schweinsteiger were also promising signings despite being at the end of their careers.

Honestly, it would be easier to mention the 'correct' signings we got right

 

[flappyjay]

Sanchez for me despite being class at Arsenal seemed like a wrong transfer for us on a squad building perspective. We bemoaned that our left side was our strongest side and everything went through that part of the field. What did we do? we went and signed another left winger.

Pogba and Mkhitaryan after lvg tumescent football seemed perfect on paper. Had it worked out for these 2 I think we probably sneak in a league title for ourselves.

 

[Murder on Zidane's Floor]

Honestly thought Schneiderlin was great business and I was ecstatic that we finally had a long term defensive midfielder.

Yeah, he was good for Southampton.

 

[pacifictheme]

Di Maria was never correct. We knew he didn't want to come here but psg didn't want him that season for some reason.

 

[pascell]

I thought Memphis would become something brilliant at United, same with Martial. Both young, solid potential but both lacked the right attitude.

 

[tomaldinho1]

I would take Lukaku and Maguire off the list personally, there were a lot of dissenting voices there particularly for the latter.

Depay and Schneiderlin were the two I thought were most nailed on to succeed here.

 

[Hughes35]

The ones I thought were "correct" that ended up being shocking are Sanchez, Di Maria, Lukaku & Pogba.

I was never convinced by the others

 

[Scandi Red]

I would take Lukaku and Maguire off the list personally, there were a lot of dissenting voices there particularly for the latter.

Really? I feel that everywhere I went the common line was "good signing, but over-payed by at least 20 million".

 

[Big Andy]

I thought Memphis would become something brilliant at United, same with Martial. Both young, solid potential but both lacked the right attitude.

That game against Brugge (?) where he scored a couple had me loudly proclaiming him as the second coming of Ronaldo at the time.

 

[KeanoMagicHat]

I never thought Sánchez was correct, he was on crazy wages and had been on the decline for Arsenal. Martial at the time had been playing well in his position too. That salary created a lot of issues in the squad with the wage structure, that and he was complete horseshit.

I’d say Sancho is the one here, marketed as the solution to our right wing problem and then barely plays there and we hear he likes to play off the left like 4 other players in the team, then looks nothing like the player at Dortmund at all.

 

[tomaldinho1]

Really? I feel that everywhere I went the common line was "good signing, but over-payed by at least 20 million".

I did a quick trawl of the sacred caf archives. These prophets should be honoured (there were many many more).

@Jev

He is not worth 60m. We would be repeating the mistakes of Moyes and LvG to be signing decent players to make up numbers. We should be trying to sign world class players, not bloating the squad with players that we won't be able to move on once we realise they're a weak link against the top sides.

@9 Stone Elvis

Maguire is above average. Above average costs £30m. Maguire had a good World Cup too, that puts another £20m on the price. He is also English, that's another £20/30m . That means you are having to pay 70-80m for a maybe 30m player. Not for me Clive.

@M Bison

Woody was right on this one. Maguire is a decent player but no better than what we've got, if you were looking at it objectively, he wouldn't get in our team. The only thing he has over our existing CB's is his injury record.

@Cassidy

No he is not better

@Hawks2008

If the aim is to play a high line his pace would be a hindrance, and on top of this I do think he's a bit overrated. Has mistakes in him that I never see mentioned enough.

@Hammondo

Not good enough.

@Robbie Boy

Thank god someone that isn’t us is wasting money on this chap.

@crossy1686

Pep's buying of defenders is fecking shocking. If City want him we know we should stay well clear.

@ayushreddevil9

Shaw has a tendency to not recover very often. Lindelof was left exposed too many times last year. If Maguire plays the LCB role, I would be worried.

@RussellWilson

I have my reservations on his agility and acceleration. He also tends to back off a lot, not a fan of that style of defending.

@Stevondo8

Is it just me that thinks he's a bit average?

@Irrational.

Our scouting team need to be fired if Maguire is the best they can come up with for £80 million.

@kouroux

I have always known he was a bit shit. The World Cup has confused people

 

[Hammondo]

I did a quick trawl of the sacred caf archives. These prophets should be honoured (there were many many more).

@Jev

@9 Stone Elvis

@M Bison

@Cassidy

@Hawks2008

@Hammondo

@Robbie Boy

@crossy1686

@ayushreddevil9

@RussellWilson

@Stevondo8

@Irrational.

@kouroux

I think you are missing some context, I believe I wrote that he is not ready to lead the line for a top club yet.

 

[tomaldinho1]

I think you are missing some context, I believe I wrote that he is not ready to lead the line for a top club yet.

It was literally just those 3 words my friend, maybe in a subsequent post but I just went though and fair to say there were a lot like you (and me) who were not convinced by him.

 

[Mickeza]

Darmian was loved on here when we were linked with him.

 

[Dirty Schwein]

I thought Kagawa was going to be something special.

Edit: Didn't realise it's post SAF.

Sancho is the biggest one for me.

 

[Raw]

Darmian was loved on here when we were linked with him.

He looked brilliant in his first 5 or so games for us

 

[Hammondo]

It was literally just those 3 words my friend, maybe in a subsequent post but I just went though and fair to say there were a lot like you (and me) who were not convinced by him.

Not convinced is fair, I hate jumping onto bandwagons and saying X youngsters is going to be the next god of football. I have no idea how good he will be, just like our current new striker whom I have said feck all about.

 

[Irrational.]

I remember being bowled over with the Falcao signing. I remember exactly where I was when it was announced.

I was giddy with excitement when we played Leicester and he was starting with ADM.

Shame it didn’t work out and we got turned over. (Feck you Vardy).

In another timeline we trounce Leicester and win another title.

 

[Scandi Red]

I thought Kagawa was going to be something special.

Edit: Didn't realise it's post SAF.

Sancho is the biggest one for me.

In any case the lesson is clear: don't sign a Dortmund player unless City are interested too. I can't believe we got Kagawa, Mkhitaryan and Sancho and they got Gündogan and Haaland

 

[VanTastic_]

I thought a lot of van Gaal signings were good on paper. It was a mix of youth, players ready to kick on the next stage, and some Galacticos. Sadly out of all his transfers only Shaw worked out (and it took a while) and Herrera and Blind were decent.

 

[L1nk]

I thought Kagawa was going to be something special.

Edit: Didn't realise it's post SAF.

Sancho is the biggest one for me.

I believe he would have been if he'd be playing under ETH right now. I absolutely loved the signing but never fully understood it, he was a Bruno Fernandes type 10, he wasn't a Rooney and under SAF we didn't play the kinds of formations that would allow Kagawa to flourish, which is often why we saw him on the wing, a position that wasn't his best and his attributes didn't really lend itself well to the Premier League for that role. There was rumours obviously that he was supposed to play alongside Rooney but then the opportunity to sign RVP came and Kagawa suffered as a result - the rest is history.

Kagawa would have been incredible at Klopp's Liverpool and now for us because he was a fantastic recycler of the ball and excellent and quick in the transition. Excelled in that Dortmund team.

 

[tomaldinho1]

Not convinced is fair, I hate jumping onto bandwagons and saying X youngsters is going to be the next god of football. I have no idea how good he will be, just like our current new striker whom I have said feck all about.

I like the look of Rasmus, difference for me is he's so much younger (20) versus buying Maguire at 26 where you kind of know what he is. Maguire is not a terrible player he is just not that amazing, Rasmus might not be an amazing striker but I guess the hope is he has a few years to really develop and grow into a better player.

 

[VorZakone]

Schneiderlin...

 

[L1nk]

I thought our midfield was sorted for at least a little while with Schweinsteiger and Schneiderlin

Schweinsteiger a few years too late but what a player
Schneiderlin I remember people crying out for before he was a great midfielder for Southampton, a sure fire signing if ever there was one.

Was gutted when both basically flopped, at least Schweinsteiger was a bit more understandable because of age but Schneiderlin's mental state just couldn't cope with the demands of LVG and the club - by his own words - and I was a little sad for him

 

[Simbo]

Don't forget Falcao

 

[Shark]

Darmian was loved on here when we were linked with him.

We never signed many Italians over the years so guessing there was a novelty factor.

 

[Plastic Evra]

Di Maria was never correct. We knew he didn't want to come here but psg didn't want him that season for some reason.

And he went on to perform pretty admirably here.

 

[BuzzKillington]

I think the list would be easier if we just posted the ones which were actually correct.

Shaw, Martinez, Herrera - good

Casemiro, Varane, Lindelof, AwB, Cavani & Eriksen - ok for varying reasons.

James, Telles & Malacia - shit but cheap so worth a punt.

The rest are either not correct or the jury’s still out on them.

 

[Scandi Red]

I think the list would be easier if we just posted the ones which were actually correct.

This would be mine:

Good
Bruno, Shaw, Herrera, Martinez

Ok
Varane*, Casemiro**, Blind, AWB, Lindelöf, Eriksen

Could make an argument for
Mata, Matic, Cavani, Dalot


* will be bumped to good if he can sort out his injuries
** will be bumped to good if he can regain his form from last season, minus the red cards

 

[Partridge]

Phil Jones. Nothing else needs to be said.

 

[Chairman Steve]

I thought Schneiderlin was going to be amazing so I was gutted when he was anything but that. He was so invisible.

 

[Skills]

Maguire shouldn't be on that list.

 

[garelo]

Pogba, Lukaku, and Sancho for me, they were expensive signings but unlike Maguire or Antony, they kinda justified their big fees when they arrived as they're relatively young and had good record at their previous clubs, they looked like would be integral part of our club for decades to come.

 

[Annihilate Now!]

Thought Schneiderlin and Bastian would be ace - got that a bit wrong.

Also thought Lukaku would be great, which didn't quite work out

Was pretty weary about everyone else mentioned in the OP.

 

[Plant0x84]

jump straight into the starting eleven and almost immediately make a positive impact. And they would keep making a positive impact for years to come.

Harry Maguire fulfills this criteria, I don’t consider him a flop.

 

[fezzerUTD]

Be an unpopular opinion but with the right support (under Fergie) Di Maria would have been a beast.

 

[Tom Cato]

Really? I feel that everywhere I went the common line was "good signing, but over-payed by at least 20 million".

Yeah Maguire was universally seen as a good, but expensive, purchase.

He also had a very good debut season, his only big thing was his inability to convert offensive headers into goals, defensively he was solid. Of course now he is a huge dud, but in the start he was great.

https://www.skysports.com/football/...manchester-united-debut-showed-his-importance

Manchester United beat Chelsea 4-0 at Old Trafford on Super Sunday but while the forwards had their fun, it was the home side’s new defender who earned the man of the match award. Harry Maguire’s dream debut showed why he will be such a key man this season, writes Adam Bate.

Tammy Abraham has the ball at his feet on the edge of the Manchester United box and another opportunity for the equaliser that Chelsea are seeking appears imminent. But he is dispossessed by Harry Maguire. Within moments the ball is at the other end. Andreas Pereira crosses from the right and Anthony Martial bundles it into the net. Two nil to United.

Marcus Rashford's opener from the penalty spot might have been enough to win the match. The third and fourth sealed it. But it was this second goal that may have pleased Ole Gunnar Solskjaer the most. Here was Maguire, the defender he had pushed hard to bring in, starting the move for a goal scored by Martial, the man he had entrusted with the No 9 shirt.

It was an emphatic result to mark the start of Solskjaer's first full season in charge, even though United did not look convincing for much of the first hour of the match. Abraham had hit the post when the game was goalless and Emerson repeated the trick before the half was out. As Maguire himself pointed out afterwards, United were fortunate early on.

 

[RaddyRed]

I was at the Newcastle away game shortly after Sanchez signed and watching him closely you could see what a superstar he was, touch, movement, skill etc.

I'm still stunned how bad he actually turned out in the end.

Agree on Sancho, we needed a RW, we got a RW. We then are told he needs a different RB to get the best out of him. We then got told he is actually a LW. We then realise he is rubbish.