Manchester United have spent over £1.6 billion since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013. That’s a lot of wonga for zero Premier League titles, especially when you consider how many Manchester City have won in that time.
We have ranked all 65 signings made for the first team post-Ferguson. The number in the bracket next to them is where they placed when this list was initially made in April 2022, with 45 signings accounted for at the time. Any players signed since then will have the number from when they were added. Enjoy the drivel.
65) Alexis Sanchez (swap) (45)
The Red Devils signed one of the best players in the Premier League on astronomical wages and he seemed to become an incompetent footballer overnight.
64) Antony (£80m) (16)
The Brazilian has been a catastrophic signing and Man Utd will be lucky to get £15m for him if he is put up for sale. £80m was absolute robbery. And he was available for half the price two months before he joined. The next time we update this, he will probably be bottom.
53) Andy Kellett (loan) (44)
Who? Exactly.
62) Radamel Falcao (£6.8m loan fee) (42)
Another player who joined with a huge reputation; Falcao failed to rediscover his FC Porto and Atletico Madrid form during his spell with Man Utd and then Chelsea.
61) Jadon Sancho (£76.5m) (5)
Time is up for Sancho at Man Utd. He joined Chelsea on loan in the summer and will join permanently for somewhere between £20-30million, which is a humiliating loss on Man Utd’s part.
60) Angel Di Maria (£67.5m) (43)
Joining off the back of a man-of-the-match performance in a Champions League final, Di Maria flopped at Old Trafford. The only saving grace from his stint in Manchester is that the club recouped £56.7m when he was sold to PSG less than a year after arriving.
59) Memphis Depay (£30.6m) (39)
Wearing the No. 7 shirt has become something of a curse since Cristiano Ronaldo left in 2009; even for the Portuguese himself.
Depay came in as a terrific youngster from the Netherlands and took on the famous number. The forward scored seven goals in 53 games and left for Lyon for a little over half of what Man Utd paid for him.
58) Morgan Schneiderlin (£31.5m) (37)
Schneiderlin was great for Southampton, so Louis van Gaal brought him to Old Trafford where the Frenchman was nowhere near good enough. He left for £20m, so it’s not all bad. Bloody Everton.
57) Bastian Schweinsteiger (£8m) (35)
Schweinsteiger is a Bayern Munich legend and a forgettable Manchester United midfielder.
56) Martin Dubravka (£2m loan fee) (41)
When Dubravka joined from Newcastle United, many expected him to feature in the Europa League group stage, but Dubravka only played three cup games before having his loan terminated in January. What a pointless transfer.
55) Jack Butland (loan) (39)
Brought in for the rest of the season in January 2022 after Dubravka’s loan ended. Butland did not make a single appearance for the club. His form for Rangers has been spectacular.
54) Odion Ighalo (£10.8m loan fee) (34)
£10m is a lot of money for a loan deal, especially when the player doesn’t improve the squad.
53) Guillermo Varela (£2m) (33)
The Uruguayan right-back played four times in the Premier League for Man Utd.
52) Paul Pogba (£94.5m) (38)
Pogba left United for Juventus on a free transfer in 2012, only to be re-signed by the Premier League club for a world-record transfer fee, to then return to Turin on a free transfer in 2022.
He was excellent in fits and starts but nowhere near consistent enough.
51) Romelu Lukaku (£76m) (35)
He scored a decent amount of goals but didn’t do enough to merit a £76m transfer fee.
50) Donny van de Beek (£35m) (36)
The pain has finally ended for poor Van de Beek, who is officially free, joining Girona in the 2024 summer transfer window.
49) Lee Grant (£1.5m) (31)
Fits the home-grown quota and joined Manchester United for no other reason.
48) Victor Valdes (free) (30)
Both player and club could have done without this move.
47) Harry Maguire (£78.3m) (41)
Often the scapegoat and always mocked, the former Man Utd captain has put in many good displays for the club. However, the bad outweighs the good and as a result, he has not even come close to nearly justifying his hefty price tag.
46) Tom Heaton (free) (29)
See Lee Grant. But Heaton was a free transfer.
45) Dan James (£16m) (24)
James was never good enough for Man Utd and was probably only signed as he was seen as Young And Hungry. The best thing to come from his move is that they turned a rare profit when they sold him to Leeds United.
44) Eric Bailly (£34m) (22)
Erratic and amusing, Bailly was signed for big money and was more of a comical than he was convincing at defending. Injuries didn’t help him, to be fair.
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43) Mason Mount (£55.4m) (22)
Mount’s first year at Old Trafford was plagued by injuries and his start to 2024/25 has been the same.
He cost an absolute fortune with only a year left on his Chelsea contract and even when fit, he has been very underwhelming.
We all know the ability Mount possesses but we have not seen it since 2022, which is quite a while ago.
42) Tahith Chong (free) (17)
Having paid no transfer fee for the young Dutch winger, Man Utd looked like they did pretty well. He didn’t get much of a chance and was sold to Birmingham City for £1.5m after a successful year on loan before getting his chance in the Premier League with Luton Town, who he did quite well for.
The Red Devils were right to sell Chong but definitely could have got more for him.
41) Timothy Fosu-Mensah (£342k) (28)
Fosu-Mensah was pretty cheap and the club turned a profit in the end. He made 30 first-team appearances and was quite useful due to his versatility.
40) Matteo Darmian (£16m) (27)
The Italian was bang average for United and was only sold for £2m.
39) Marcos Rojo (£18m) (25)
Often erratic, Rojo was box office at times but had an average spell at Old Trafford.
38) Wout Weghorst (£2.6m loan fee) (23)
Weghorst came in to fill a gap between January and June 2023 and was signed for peanuts, unlike Ighalo. Even still, it was a weird spell for everyone involved.
37) Henrikh Mkhitaryan (£37.8m) (21)
The other half of the worst deal on this list, Mkhitaryan joined with lofty expectations having provided 90 goal contributions in 140 games for Borussia Dortmund.
He scored in a Europa League final victory for United. He also scored a scorpion kick (that would not have counted in the VAR era). Anything good he did for the club was eclipsed by the woeful swap deal which saw him go to Arsenal.
Mkhitaryan with an amazing Scorpion Kick goal! Goal of the season? 🔥 pic.twitter.com/zKlridRt3V
— Football Cvlture (@FootballCVLTURE) December 26, 2016
36) Hannibal Mejbri (£9m) (18)
Bought from Monaco in 2019, Mejbri spent the 22/23 campaign on loan at Birmingham and wasted the second half of last season on loan at Sevilla. He is now at Burnley in the Championship.
35) Nemanja Matic (£40m) (23)
Man Utd signed Matic four years too late.
34) Facundo Pellistri (£7.6m) (20)
There was plenty of faith in Pellistri to come good at Old Trafford but not enough apparently. He joined Panathinaikos for around £5m in the summer.
33) Tyrell Malacia (£13m) (15)
Malacia quickly shifted Luke Shaw out of the starting XI before generously giving his spot back to the England international. He did not make a single appearance last season and is yet to appear in 24/25.
32) Joshua Zirkzee (£36.5m) (26)
Zirkzee has had a horrible time of it since moving to Old Trafford from Bologna last summer. Ruben Amorim hung him out to dry with his first-half substitution against Newcastle and given his already extremely low confidence, the young striker might be broken for the rest of the season.
READ MORE: Zirkzee nightmare proved Man Utd fans are not actually a uniquely tolerant, civilised breed
31) Daley Blind (£15.7m) (16)
Blind was a handy player to have. Versatile, consistent, rarely outstanding. He played over 140 times in four years at Old Trafford and is currently thriving at Girona.
30) Alex Telles (£13.5m) (14)
Telles was decent when called upon but Erik ten Hag sent him out on loan to Sevilla in his first summer at Old Trafford. He joined Al Nassr permanently last July and is now playing for Botafogo.
29) Marouane Fellaini (£29m) (26)
Fellaini was the first signing post-Ferguson after David Moyes bought him on deadline day for a higher price than the release clause that was active earlier in the window. He made 177 appearances for the Red Devils before leaving for Shandong Taishan in 2019.
28) Anthony Martial (£54m) (12)
Martial joined as the most expensive teenager in world football, scored a wonderful goal on his debut and was being compared to Thierry Henry. He scored 17 goals in 32 Premier League matches in 19/20 and looked like he was coming of age. After that terrific year, he looked slow and poor in front of goal.
After an underwhelming loan spell at Sevilla, Ten Hag gave Martial another chance with his fitness letting him down. He joined AEK Athens on a free transfer in September.
27) Sofyan Amrabat (£8.5m loan fee) (24)
If Amrabat played like he did in his last month at Old Trafford all season, he would be a lot higher.
26) Victor Lindelof (£31.5m) (11)
Another expensive centre-half, Lindelof has not been a bad signing. But ‘not bad’ doesn’t really cut the mustard for Manchester United. After all, This Is Manchester United We’re Talking About.
25) Rasmus Hojlund (£64.7m) (17)
There remain big expectations for Hojlund after a disappointing debut campaign. Given his inexperience, you can forgive him for using his first season to settle in.
It’s a lot of money for a young player. Patience is a virtue, folks. It is vitally important to remember that.
24) Manuel Ugarte (£42.3m) (23)
A signing that looks amazing on paper, Ugarte is not up to speed yet.
23) Aaron Wan-Bissaka (£49.5m) (40)
Wan-Bissaka is one of Ten Hag’s biggest success stories at Man Utd. The right-back enjoyed a very productive 22/23 campaign but was never able to usurp Diogo Dalot and his transfer fee will always look very silly.
22) Matthijs de Ligt (£38.4m) (24)
Ajax, Juventus, Bayern Munich, Manchester United. Matthijs de Ligt has an impressive CV. An impressive CV is one thing, performing on the pitch is another. The fact he has failed at a couple of big clubs is not a great sign but he can’t be any worse than what the Red Devils already have.
21) Raphael Varane (£36m) (7)
Varane failed to convince everyone that he is in fact a four-time Champions League winner in his time at Old Trafford. Injuries absolutely did not help but what a disappointment he was.
The Frenchman joined Cesc Fabregas’ Como in the summer and has since retired.
20) Amad Diallo (£19m) (19)
After a rubbish loan spell with Rangers, Diallo was being written off by many (myself included). However, his time with Sunderland was superb with the young Ivorian increasing his transfer value and staking a claim for minutes in the Premier League.
His transfer fee could rise to £37m, which still looks like a poor investment even if he has showed plenty of promise since Amorim’s arrival.
19) Marcel Sabitzer (loan) (21)
As far as half-season emergency loans go, this was a success. Ten Hag decided against signing Sabitzer on a permanent basis, which looks a bit silly now.
18) Sergio Romero (free) (8)
And as far as back-up goalkeepers go, Romero was pretty good. And he cost bugger all, which is always a bonus.
17) Jonny Evans (free) (38)
It is hilarious how high Evans is here. Genuinely astounding.
The 36-year-old did not expect to play so much but injuries have forced Erik ten Hag’s hand. When called upon, he has actually been pretty good. Much better than anyone anticipated, at least.
16) Leny Yoro (£52m) (12)
Yoro’s potential is astronomical and that is why he is so high.
15) Andre Onana (£45.2m) (11)
Upgrading on David de Gea should have been Ten Hag’s top priority when he took over and it took him a year to realise the Spaniard needed to be replaced. Do not be blinded by his 22/23 Golden Glove.
Onana is a big upgrade on De Gea but has not been as good as we expected. He makes far too many errors and his distribution is shaky, despite being well-renowned for that aspect of his game.
14) Juan Mata (£40m) (15)
David Moyes’ second major signing after Fellaini, Mata joined from Chelsea with high expectations. The Spaniard played 285 times for the Red Devils, with game time hard to come from the start of 20/21 up until his departure in June 2022.
13) Fred (£53m) (10)
A few years ago Fred was in the same bracket as Lukaku, Pogba, and others as the big-money flops. But the Brazilian midfielder massively improved in his last two years at the club.
£53m is still pretty bloody steep, mind.
12) Edinson Cavani (free) (9)
Seventeen goals in 39 games in his first season was a great return from a player signed on a free transfer. He was rewarded with a new contract before Man Utd bought Cristiano Ronaldo, which screwed the Uruguayan over.
11) Christian Eriksen (free) (4)
A lot of us fancied Eriksen to be the bargain of the 22/23 campaign and his transfer fee – or lack of – is doing a lot of heavy lifting. He has been pretty average. We still love you, Christian.
10) Noussair Mazraoui (£12.8m) (17)
Another former Ajax player signed by Ten Hag, Mazraoui has already proven to be a useful signing, thriving at right-back under the Dutchman and then doing well as a wing-back under Amorim. He is comfortably the best signing Man Utd made last summer.
9) Lisandro Martinez (£50m) (5)
Martinez is a fine footballer who adapted to Premier League life very quickly despite being written off before kicking a ball because of his height. The Argentine World Cup winner attracted interest from Arsenal before joining the Red Devils and it is clear to see why. His return from injury at the end of 23/24 helped Ten Hag win the FA Cup.
8) Ander Herrera (£32m) (6)
Herrera was named Manchester United Fans’ Player of the Season in 2017 after he helped them win the League Cup and Europa League. He played 189 times for the Red Devils and was a fan favourite due to his passion, tireless work rate, and man-marking techniques; just ask Eden Hazard.
7) Cristiano Ronaldo (£13.5m) (4)
There’s not a lot to say that has not already been said. £13.5m for the most marketable footballer on the planet isn’t too bad at the end of the day. Even if it ended up turning into the biggest circus in world football.
6) Casemiro (£61.5m) (3)
After spending the whole 2022 summer transfer window chasing Frenkie de Jong, Man Utd realised that Casemiro was sitting right there willing to slot straight into their midfield.
This is such a weird one now. In his debut season, Casemiro was outstanding and the main reason Ten Hag was able to end the club’s trophy drought and finish third in the Premier League, which is why he is so high here.
In his second season, the Brazilian was awful. He looked remarkably off the pace and Man Utd prayed a Saudi Arabian club would bail them out in the summer.
At this stage, the Red Devils shouldn’t be too bothered about what transfer fee they get; it’s all about getting Casemiro’s monstrous contract off the books.
5) Luke Shaw (£33.7m) (3)
He has been criticised for his fitness and defending during his Man Utd career, but he is one of few to actually live up to his transfer fee.
Shaw is one of the best left-backs in the world and someone Ten Hag depended on. It’s a shame he struggles to stay fit.
4) Diogo Dalot (£19.8m) (13)
Dalot’s time at the club looked up in the summer of 2021 with Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma circling, however, he has since established himself as the club’s first-choice right-back ahead of Wan-Bissaka, before it became the flip of a coin for Ten Hag.
He is now the club’s most consistent performer.
3) Alejandro Garnacho (£400k) (10)
What a bargain. Man Utd have done extremely well here. A broken clock is right twice a day and all that.
2) Zlatan Ibrahimovic (free) (2)
This is arguably the first signing on this list which was/has been a huge, unqualified success at Old Trafford. It only took 63 players to get here but at least we did.
Zlatan scored 28 goals and provided 10 assists in his only full season, helped the Red Devils win the Europa League and scored a brace in the final of the League Cup as they beat Southampton 3-2 at Wembley. In 17/18, he struggled for fitness and left for LA Galaxy, for whom he scored 22 goals in 27 games in the same campaign.
1) Bruno Fernandes (£56.7m) (1)
Although his performances are not as good as they were during the behind-closed-doors days, Bruno Fernandes has been a revelation at Old Trafford. In his first season and a half, Fernandes provided 65 goal contributions in 80 games and was the best player in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side by a country mile.
He is one of the best midfielders in the Premier League and a rare bit of great business by the Red Devils. It will take a lot to bump him off top spot.