The transfer scenario has changed drastically around Old Trafford since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped down as the Manchester United manager. His successors, David Moyes, Louis Van Gaal and now Jose Mourinho has spent a fortune to bring a whole host of players from different leagues.
Sir Alex Ferguson left David Moyes, his immediate successor with the group of players who had just won the English Premier League and he bought Juan Mata and a panic transfer of Marouane Fellaini from his the former club Everton on the deadline day. Despite bringing in a couple of new players, the season was a disaster with United failing to secure a top-four position in the league.
Moyes’s successor, Van Gaal, stayed at the club for two years where he gave the club Anthony Martial and an FA Cup title but considering the amount of money he spent to buy new players which were nearly around 250 million pounds, his time at United was a failed one.
Looking back at all the transfers since Sir Alex left, here is a look at the five of the worst transfers since then.
#1 Ángel Di María
When he arrived, there was a lot of speculation about him being the man who could bring a change to the struggling United team and immediately got the most coveted No. 7 jersey. But he failed to live up to the quality of the players who have donned that jersey before him. He struggled in his first season with injuries, suspensions, and off-field issues which forced him to not come back for the second season and he eventually signed for PSG.
#2 Radamel Falcao
Falcao had terrible luck with injuries and his short stint at Old Trafford in the 2014/15 season was poor, with just four goals scored in 29 games. He then went on to have an even worse time at Chelsea – scoring once in 16 appearances before returning to Monaco where he is now in his usual self and banging in goals regularly.
#3 Memphis Depay
He got the No.7 shirt, but he failed to carry out the responsibilities which came along with it. Memphis tried hard to establish himself as a regular in the team, but nothing seemed to click for the Dutchman, and he was eventually sold to Lyon after he failed to appear in Jose Mourinho’s plans.
#4 Bastian Schweinsteiger
Due to his injuries, he struggled to influence games, and the writing was on the wall. With Jose Mourinho appointed as the new manager after Louis Van Gaal, Bastian was made clear that he had no future at the club and he was sold to Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire.
#5 Morgan Schneiderlin
Morgan Schneiderlin helped take Southampton from the third tier of English football to the Premier League which had Louis Van Gaal and Ed Woodward’s eyes rolling for the France International. The center-midfielder got his dream move to Old Trafford in 2015 after United agreed on a £25m fee with the Saints. But it is one thing to play for Southampton and a completely different ball game playing for Manchester United.
His struggles came to an end after playing mere 32 times in two seasons with the Red Devils until Everton bought the midfielder in January 2017.
Another transfer disaster!
