Sport
Who are the worst Manchester United signings ever?
Even the most casual fans kno that Manchester United are one of the biggest and successful clubs in the world. Most players dream of appearing for The Red Devils and hope that they win a trophy or two during their time at Old Trafford. More often than not for the players who do sign, these dreams become a reality and they will enjoy a wealth of memories which will live on for themselves and fans. However, for some, their fortunes quickly turn and they realise that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. With that in mind, for who did The Theatre of Dreams turn into The Theatre of Nightmares? We look at some of the worst Manchester United signings of all time.
The 9 worst Manchester United signings in history
Massimo Taibi
Everyone knew it would be difficult replacing Peter Schmeichel when he left in 1999 but nobody predicted the nightmare-inducing appearances of Massimo Taibi. The Italian joined United in 1999 from Venezia as back up but, as United went through a goalkeeper injury crisis, Taibi quickly earned his shot at the big time.
It didn’t last long however as a horrendous error against Southampton saw the ball seemingly go through him as they drew to The Saints in September 1999. Then two months later he conceded 5 against Chelsea in one of their worst defeats of the 1990s. Dubbed “The Blind Venetian” by the media, Taibi’s time with United was short lived and he was back in Italy less than a year later. Not one for the record books, one of the worst Italian players in Premier League history.
Alexis Sanchez
It seemed like the trade of the decade when Manchester United and Arsenal traded Alexis Sanchez and Henrikh Mkhitaryan but the deal is now seen as one of the worst of the century, for both clubs. During the previous three seasons, Sanchez had scored 72 goals in 144 games for The Gunners, making him one of the biggest names in English football. However, the Sanchez that played for United never got anywhere near the form many were expecting.
He scored just 5 goals in 50 games for The Red Devils whilst earning mega money and was eventually kept out of the side by the likes of Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial. In the end, Sanchez ended up leaving United for Inter Milan in 2019 – initially on loan – and then left permanently for almost nothing a year later. The same can be said for Mkhitaryan at Arsenal in a deal which all sides now firmly want to forget ever happened. He cost no transfer fee but thanks to his astronomical wages, Sanchez is undoubtedly one of the worst Manchester United signings ever.
Eric Djemba-Djemba
It’s hard to forget a name like Eric Djemba-Djemba and his performances were similarly unforgettable, albeit for the wrong reasons. The midfielder was initially hoped to be Roy Keane’s successor but his poor tackling skills and positional awareness quickly doused out those comparisons.
He regularly found himself on the outside of the first team and was unconvincing when given the chance to show his worth. In the end, Djemba-Djemba quickly departed as swiftly as he came, moving to Aston Villa in 2005 and creating more nightmares for fans up and down the Premier League.
Dong Fangzhuo
Manchester United have always enjoyed a big fanbase in Asia so the arrival of Dong Fanzhuo as the first Chinese player for the club was met with big excitement back in 2004. However, Dong’s limited skill set was quickly visible and he struggled to get any game time under Sir Alex Ferguson, making just one appearance for the club in 2007.
This was a real nightmare for the senior executives at the club who had spent 3 years trying to earn him a work permit after sending him to Antwerp in Belgium for 2 seasons whilst he earned the right amount of international caps needed to allow him into the UK. A right old nightmare scenario both on and off the pitch.
Phil Jones
During his time with Blackburn Rovers, Phil Jones looked like he was going to become one the top defensive stars of the 2010’s. Not surprisingly, Manchester United came along and signed Jones for £16.5m in 2011 but it was all downhill from there.
Being a versatile player capable of playing in both defence and midfield, Jones’ place was always changing never allowing him to settle and earn a particular spot in the squad. Numerous injuries also hampered his development and he struggled to breakthrough as a first team regular. As the years have gone by, Jones inconsistent performances for both United and England have hurt his stock considerably and left many wondering where it all went wrong.
Zoran Tosic and Adem Ljajlic
Back in 2009, Manchester United signed Serbian youngsters Zoran Tosic and Adem Ljajlic from Partizan Belgrade hoping that they had unearthed two hidden diamonds in the rough. Both dynamic wingers, the young pair struggled to even enter the country due to failing the work permit requirements thus only allowing to play for their reserve side.
Ljajlic never actually completed the move instead returning to Partizan and signing for Fiorentina instead. However, Tosic did sign and only played twice for United to little fanfare despite impressive for the reserves. Both players went on to enjoy top level careers in Europe but this was very much a wasted move by United officials at the time.
Gabriel Obertan
When looking at pre-Premier League, Gabriel Obertan, you could see why United were interested in him. The French winger was ridiculously quick and had impressed in Ligue 1 for Bordeaux and Lorient which encouraged them to sign him for £3m in 2009.
However, the Frenchman ended up being incredibly unreliable as numerous injuries prevented him from making many regular appearances as well as a distinct lack of output from his runs. He scored just once for United in 28 appearances over a 2-year period before he was sold to Newcastle United and where he did…nothing remarkable either. It shows that speed isn’t always everything and Obertan is a popular name when discussing the worst recent Manchester United signings.
Bebe
It’s astonishing to think that Bebe lasted at Old Trafford for 4 long years. Signed for £7.5m in 2010, the Portuguese midfielder was caught up in a transfer that became notorious for corruption and fraud allegations. Was it worth the hassle? Not really as he regularly looked sub-par to United standards and quickly saw him relegated to one-off appearances in the League Cup and European dead rubber ties. In order to gain more experience, Bebe was sent on loan to teams in both Portugal and Turkey where his performances were rather lacklustre. With no future at Old Trafford, Bebe left to join Benfica in the summer of 2014. Since then, he has bounced between clubs in Spain and Portugal almost every season and donning the reputation as one of the worst players in Premier League history and certainly among the poorest Manchester United signings.
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