Who is the worst signing of the post-Ferguson era?

[mctrials23]

Has to be Onana. We paid a large fee for him. We are likely to get absolutely feck all of that back if we can sell him. He has cost us so much money in tournaments that he single handedly got us knocked out of and cost us numerous league positions.

 

[briansy]

Honestly don't understand how Onana doesn't have 100% of the votes. Sancho didn't work out and he was / is a waster but that signing didn't hold us back massively. Onana was easily the worst player to ever wear a United shirt. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he was taking brown envelopes. His body movements just looked completely contrived and unnatural. Plus, there is just something about his demeanour - a lot of strutting around like he owned the place.

 

[JJ12]

Has to be Onana. We paid a large fee for him. We are likely to get absolutely feck all of that back if we can sell him. He has cost us so much money in tournaments that he single handedly got us knocked out of and cost us numerous league positions.

Sancho cost more in fee and wages and have already lost him for nothing. It's Sancho - he was absolutely useless and behaved like a prat while doing so.

 

[mctrials23]

Sancho cost more in fee and wages and have already lost him for nothing. It's Sancho - he was absolutely useless and behaved like a prat while doing so.

Yes he has cost us a fortune and been broadly a waste of space but he hasn't directly caused us issues outside of his fee and wages. We've also had him out on loan a few times to soften that blow and he has, at times over his time at United been useful. I can't say anything positive about Onana or anything in mitigation.

 

[Pat Evra]

Pogba shouldn't be on this list really.

 

[justsomebloke]

Yes he has cost us a fortune and been broadly a waste of space but he hasn't directly caused us issues outside of his fee and wages. We've also had him out on loan a few times to soften that blow and he has, at times over his time at United been useful. I can't say anything positive about Onana or anything in mitigation.

Onana was arguably our best player during EtHs last autumn. Mostly poor before and after that and he had to go, but that's a good deal more than Sancho ever brought, and at a fraction of the cost.

I do think quite a few here are overshooting the target when it comes to him. People are downright traumatised.

 

[gaffs]

A lot of Onana shouts. Yes, he made some absolute howlers.

For me though, the issue with Onana was we never utilized his strengths. We all saw him at Inter playing so well with his feet, sweeping up and pinging balls upfield to start the attack.

You could accept a few mistakes if there was some gain to be had out of his ball playing abilities. But no, Ten Hag didn't utilize him in that way.

 

[gaffs]

Sancho for me. The talent was there, but the had not desire to make anything out of it.

 

[Gordon S]

Sancho showed tons of talent in his early days, made good sense at the time to pursue him. Disaster in the end but shit happens.

Antony was a good rw with a good left foot. Not crazy we pursued him. Overpayed by some 50m or so..

Onana because of his fantastic feet.. yikes.

But for me the worst is between Donny and Mason. What on gods green earth were we thinking? Both supernice guys by the looks of it but complete passengers that were never going to fit in anywhere in our team. Bodys made of breadsticks on top of it. About 100m spent on these guys. We really were a charity at times under Woodward

 

[TheRedDevil'sAdvocate]

I always found the Di Maria stuff overblown.

He clearly never wanted to be here and was underwhelming but he didn't kick up a fuss and left quietly. Most of the worst quotes are from his wife.

He also had to deal with that maniac Van Gaal and his family suffered a traumatic break-in.

The hate seems way over the top when contrasted with what actually happened.

He had a direct contribution in 21% of our goals in a season we made top-four while being at odds with the manager and never really settling into life in England. The hatred stems from him being open about how much he disliked his time here; otherwise, he does not belong on that list. It's a shame really because he was a fantastic player in his prime.

 

[Rossa]

A lot of Onana shouts. Yes, he made some absolute howlers.

For me though, the issue with Onana was we never utilized his strengths. We all saw him at Inter playing so well with his feet, sweeping up and pinging balls upfield to start the attack.

You could accept a few mistakes if there was some gain to be had out of his ball playing abilities. But no, Ten Hag didn't utilize him in that way.

A few over the course of a season, but he went for quite a few each match. Sancho is impossible to beat for the honours, but Onana was a feckin trainwreck of a goalie - and goalies just make it that much worse when rubbish.

 

[mctrials23]

Onana was arguably our best player during EtHs last autumn. Mostly poor before and after that and he had to go, but that's a good deal more than Sancho ever brought, and at a fraction of the cost.

I do think quite a few here are overshooting the target when it comes to him. People are downright traumatised.

I remember some patches where he was good but he left the defence petrified due to his mistakes that he always had in him and he did singlehandedly dump us out of multiple competitions.

For me though, the issue with Onana was we never utilized his strengths. We all saw him at Inter playing so well with his feet, sweeping up and pinging balls upfield to start the attack.

We all saw him play in that CL final and he was magic. I was so excited. Imagine my surprise when he couldn't pass the damn ball. This was nothing to do with him being used in the wrong way either. He was given plenty of chances to display his range of passing and usually mad a complete mess of it. I have never quite got over the gulf between that CL final and how we was for us.

 

[gaffs]

We all saw him play in that CL final and he was magic. I was so excited. Imagine my surprise when he couldn't pass the damn ball. This was nothing to do with him being used in the wrong way either. He was given plenty of chances to display his range of passing and usually mad a complete mess of it. I have never quite got over the gulf between that CL final and how we was for us.

When at Inter, he used to ping those balls out to Darmien or Dumfrees to beat the press.

We have all seen the highlight reels where he’s playing miles out of his goal, but he didn’t play like that at United.

Don’t get me wrong, he was a disaster, but we all thought we were buying a revolutionary keeper that would help us play out of the back in a way that DDG couldn’t. But it never happened.

I think that’s because ETH didn’t trust his defence and midfield to play out. For me, it was a chicken or egg situation. Do you buy the ball playing keeper to play out the back with, or the players that want to take the ball in tight areas and progress it from the back. ETH went keeper first and it didn’t work.

 

[NewGlory]

A lot of Onana shouts. Yes, he made some absolute howlers.

For me though, the issue with Onana was we never utilized his strengths. We all saw him at Inter playing so well with his feet, sweeping up and pinging balls upfield to start the attack.

You could accept a few mistakes if there was some gain to be had out of his ball playing abilities. But no, Ten Hag didn't utilize him in that way.

I hear what you are saying, but it could also be that EPL being a completely different league from Serie A (and Champions League, for that matter) , maybe it wasn't just that he was not utilized properly, but also that Onana's perceived strengths were nullified and his weaknesses were exacerbated by the kind of opposition he faced in England?

I think it was more of that, than us not utilizing him

 

[rhodeo]

I think it has to be Sancho in terms of wages, fee and outcome. It is a frustratingly competitive field though. Prior to signing Sancho I’d have probably gone for Sanchez, despite it being a free. Shout out to Donny for the most bizarre signing, and Pogba for the most disappointing. I keep praying for Mount’s fitness - if it doesn’t improve he definitely has to be in the conversation.

 

[Ekeke]

Hard to choose from Sanchez, Sancho, Onana and Antony. A lot of the others didnt do well but the money involved was a lot smaller and they werent supposed to be the leading stars of our team like those signings. Pogba failed for the money invested, but was still one of our better high transfer fee signings at least in the last 10 years

 

[daveskimufc]

I went with who I hated the most. Argument for Sanchez as worst signing. But I did genuinely think he tried. Antony too, he just didn't have the required quality

Sancho was/is awful, see all the clubs that are clamouring for him now.....

 

[Jasong]

I would label Maguire a flop for being so slow plus all the mistakes he had made.

There's also Hojlund who was very bad at one point.

Mason Mount and Ugarte hardly have any redeeming qualities and matches. Sancho as well. At least for Alexis and Antony, one can argue that they try and make some goals, contributing in fa cup.

Some names not mentioned is Depay but his fees was relatively low. Just like Morgan and Bastian.

Top 3 would be Sancho, Ugarte and Mount.

 

[Nobby style]

Mateo Darmian was fooking' crap

 

[cyril C]

Yes he has cost us a fortune and been broadly a waste of space but he hasn't directly caused us issues outside of his fee and wages. We've also had him out on loan a few times to soften that blow and he has, at times over his time at United been useful. I can't say anything positive about Onana or anything in mitigation.

80m for costing no issues. You can pay me 1% of that and I would definitely cause the club no trouble at all.

Sanchez also did not cause any issue. In fact, the only players that stir shit was Stam (to Fergi only) and Keane. The rest just look dis-concern

 

[bavarianred]

In terms of being the most obvious failures: Mount, van de Beek

In terms of overpayment: Antony

In terms of pure performance: Onana

In terms of falling short of expectations: Sancho

 

[The Dane]

If we were to make a top 10 of the worst signings in the whole of Premier League in the post SAF era, United would probably have 4-5 on that list and Sancho would top it.
Onana, Donny, Mount and Antony all strong candidates.

 

[Jasong]

Yes he has cost us a fortune and been broadly a waste of space but he hasn't directly caused us issues outside of his fee and wages. We've also had him out on loan a few times to soften that blow and he has, at times over his time at United been useful. I can't say anything positive about Onana or anything in mitigation.

Didn't Sancho win the league cup with United, euro conference cup with Chelsea and Europa with Villa?

That should mean something and he should command a good fee.

 

[Garethw]

It’s got to be Sancho, hasn’t it?

 

[Toblerone92]

Sanchez and Falcao in terms of the hype, Van de Beek and Onana in terms of performance. I would go as far as saying 50% of our signings in the last 10 years or so have been complete pish.

 

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

Sancho is in a class all his own.

 

[Overhaul FC]

Schneiderlin, there was no reason to believe he would be anything good at United.

Atleast with Onana, Sancho and Sanchez there were atleast a chunk of supporters that thought they would be good for us at one point.

 

[J2J]

Sancho looks like the worst signing in hindsight, but I've always thought Antony was the worse signing at the time.

Sancho was a world-class young English talent tearing it up in the Bundesliga. His fee reflected his market value at the time and his huge potential. Sure, it completely blew up in our faces, and you could argue it was daft signing him to play on the right when he was better on the left. But compared to Antony, there was at least some logic behind it. Sancho only became a terrible signing in hindsight.

Antony, on the other hand, perfectly summed up our awful transfer strategy back then. A new manager comes in, demands his guy, and instead of using a proper scouting network or looking at viable alternatives, the board just folds and hand over £80+ million for a guy that everyone knew was worth maybe half that.

 

[AndySmith1990]

Schneiderlin, there was no reason to believe he would be anything good at United.

Atleast with Onana, Sancho and Sanchez there were atleast a chunk of supporters that thought they would be good for us at one point.

Wild take. Schneiderlin was mediocre and didn't cost an obscene amount in fee nor wages. No worse than nothing players like donny van beek and Fellaini

 

[Overhaul FC]

Wild take. Schneiderlin was mediocre and didn't cost an obscene amount in fee nor wages. No worse than nothing players like donny van beek and Fellaini

I'll have no bad words about Fellaini. No1 wanted him but he was an effective player for us.

Mata and Fellaini will forever be the turning point for United where we fell off. However Schneiderlin did absolutely nothing for us. To be clear I'm not considering the transfer fees or wages in my answer. Purely on what they did on the pitch for us.

Schneiderlin was the quintessential nothing player. Being ok at Southampton shouldn't have meant he signed for us. I think we signed him because we were poorly ran and couldn't decide whether to sign Schneiderlin or Schweinsteiger that summer so we just signed both.

 

[Trigestis]

Schneiderlin, there was no reason to believe he would be anything good at United.

Atleast with Onana, Sancho and Sanchez there were atleast a chunk of supporters that thought they would be good for us at one point.

The last paragraph is entirely irrelevant to the question being asked, though. Schneiderlin has no business being anywhere near this list. He was 25m, we recouped 24m and he was just mediocre, not a big deal.

 

[ExoduS]

Where does one start.

 

[Trequarista10]

I'll have no bad words about Fellaini. No1 wanted him but he was an effective player for us.

Mata and Fellaini will forever be the turning point for United where we fell off.

I have mixed feelings about Fellaini. Van Gaal and Jose got some use out of him at times, he was likeable, scored some important goals, was an outlet when played further up the pitch with his freakish chest control, and he was an attacking threat when our attack was otherwise lacklustre.

But on the other hand he was a laughing stock. In his position that Moyes seemingly signed him to play (DM/CM) he was dreadful. It's a signing that highlighted our downfall. When we were crying out for midfield reinforcements, linked with Fabregas, Kroos etc and to end up with Fellaini. That Moyes season knocked us back considerably, we were always playing catch up after that, missing out on top talents to better performing clubs, or overpaying for big names who were damaged goods and didn't fit the team.

 

[Overhaul FC]

I have mixed feelings about Fellaini. Van Gaal and Jose got some use out of him at times, he was likeable, scored some important goals, was an outlet when played further up the pitch with his freakish chest control, and he was an attacking threat when our attack was otherwise lacklustre.

But on the other hand he was a laughing stock. In his position that Moyes seemingly signed him to play (DM/CM) he was dreadful. It's a signing that highlighted our downfall. When we were crying out for midfield reinforcements, linked with Fabregas, Kroos etc and to end up with Fellaini. That Moyes season knocked us back considerably, we were always playing catch up after that, missing out on top talents to better performing clubs, or overpaying for big names who were damaged goods and didn't fit the team.

It was a mistake, but I wouldn't hold it against Fellaini who at the time was one of the only few who were putting in a shift each week. It was the clubs recruitment failure.

 

[KeanoMagicHat]

Ronaldo should be on the list, but Sanchez is the one for me. He was supposed to bring us to the next level and he scored 3 league goals, pathetic. Wasn't even good from general player either. Difficult behind the scenes and on ridiculous wages. At no point did he even play well for United. Sancho would be up there too, but he even had rare moments in the first two seasons.

 

[fallengt]

It has to be Sancho
He's now a free agent, and no club wants him. That's all you need to know
Bloke's speedruning his career

 

[michelleOntaRio-Rio]

Ronaldo should be on the list, but Sanchez is the one for me. He was supposed to bring us to the next level and he scored 3 league goals, pathetic. Wasn't even good from general player either. Difficult behind the scenes and on ridiculous wages. At no point did he even play well for United. Sancho would be up there too, but he even had rare moments in the first two seasons.

The irony here.

Ronaldo came in and did his job effectively to the extent that he scored 24 goals and won our player of the year. The dude won us many matches against top teams, sometimes single handedly,

The second season it was known in pre season ETH didn’t want him. He should have been allowed to leave that summer. What transpired was disrespect towards a legend of the game who then disrespected a giant of a club to force a move.

He’s no place whatsoever in that list. But as with Pogba fan sentiment separates performance from logic.

 

[KeanoMagicHat]

The irony here.

Ronaldo came in and did his job effectively to the extent that he scored 24 goals and won our player of the year. The dude won us many matches against top teams, sometimes single handedly,

The second season it was known in pre season ETH didn’t want him. He should have been allowed to leave that summer. What transpired was disrespect towards a legend of the game who then disrespected a giant of a club to force a move.

He’s no place whatsoever in that list. But as with Pogba fan sentiment separates performance from logic.

Our team went to shit when he arrived, people mocked how easy it was to build up as he just stood there, we went from a fast counter attacking team to nothing, the team collapsed, manager sacked within a few months while he was paid massive wages specifically to bring United to the next level. He ‘singled handedly’ dragged us from 6th to 6th in lost of fairly meaningless games after going missing in the key part of the season. Club went from 2nd to 6th, then he caused a circus second season and got sacked, left for free, never got close to winning anything. Disastrous signing.

 

[lysglimt]

He definitely does. 250k a week and struggles to make the bench. 50 million cost, around 60 million in wages and will struggle to make a 100 appearances for the club.

At least we were able to loan out Sancho and Onana, no club will even entertain that prospect with Mount.

The difference is - when Mount is injury-free, he offers something to the team. Sancho and Onana were like giving the opponent an extra player.

 

[Bastian]

Would probably be interesting to do a thread on the 2nd best player signed post SAF.