How poorly has Manchester United fared in the transfer market over the last five years? The simple answer: quite poorly. This week, an analysis by the CIES Football Observatory revealed that United has had the worst value for money in transfers among top-tier clubs since January 2021.

During this period, the club has amassed a staggering negative balance of £422 million. With such an expenditure, one would expect the acquisition of significant trophies as a return on investment.

Intrigued by this financial misstep, Daily Mail Sport decided to evaluate the players brought in during this timeframe. Our focus was on those who have made appearances on the field since their signing.

A notable example is the lengthy pursuit of Jadon Sancho. United’s interest in him spanned two summers before they finally secured his transfer for a hefty £75 million, bringing him to Old Trafford amid great expectations.

30. Jadon Sancho

United chased Sancho for not one, but two summers before eventually sealing a deal worth £75million to bring him to Old Trafford amid much fanfare. 

But the move has been a disaster. 83 appearances, 12 goals and six assists read his stats. Oh, and one Instagram post reading ‘freedom’ when he sealed a loan move to Chelsea.

Sancho will at last get his ‘freedom’ when his contract expires in the summer – and that will put a smile on a lot of United fans’ faces. 

29. Antony  

Deciding whose United career was less of a disappointment out of Antony and Sancho was a tough decision – but I think the Brazilian’s spell just pips the Englishman’s. 

Put simply, £81.3million for Antony was almost daylight robbery. Such were his woes in the north-west that in his last year at the club I actually felt a bit sorry for him. 

At least since leaving Old Trafford Antony’s looked half-decent… quite unlike Sancho at Aston Villa. 

28. Andre Onana  

Onana was signed for some £55million on the back of a stellar Champions League campaign with Inter Milan, but that version of the Cameroonian never arrived in Manchester. 

He endured a torrid, sometimes comically bad, two seasons at the club before being shipped off to Trabzonspor on-loan. 

His final appearance (surely) for United came during the disaster at Grimsby Town, in which he didn’t save a single penalty in the shootout which saw Ruben Amorim’s side crash out of the Carabao Cup. 

28. Jack Butland 

Signed as a back-up goalkeeper by Ten Hag in the January of 2023, Butland never actually made an appearance for the club. He’s gone on to become Rangers’ No 1. 

27. Martin Dubravka  

Managed two more appearance than Butland for United before being recalled by Newcastle United… and he looked shaky in them both. 

26. Tom Heaton 

Just the three United appearances for Heaton during his almost five years at the club. Somewhat incredibly, he’s thought to be part of Amorim’s current leadership group. Personalities matter.

25. Altay Bayindir  

Bayindir was never supposed to be United’s No 1 stopper but unfortunately he has succumbed to the same lack of conviction as Onana. Decent enough as a No 2 but does not inspire widespread confidence.  

24. Sergio Reguilon 

Signed amid a left-back crisis on an emergency loan in 2023, Reguilon was a trier. 

His career has gone downhill since he was a regular at Tottenham Hotspur. The former Real Madrid prodigy is currently without a club having left Brentford after a loan spell in west London last season. 

23. Wout Weghorst  

Despite failing to register a single Premier League goal for the club, Weghorst was United’s No 9 when they won the Carabao Cup against Newcastle United. 

The Dutchman’s loan stint at Old Trafford wasn’t brilliant, it has to be said, but watching him shed a tear when he scored his first United goal in the Europa League was a touching moment. He gave his all.  

22. Tyrell Malacia  

Showed signs of promise early on, particularly during a win at Old Trafford against Liverpool under Ten Hag, but a mystery injury saw him disappear into the wilderness for almost two years. 

Since coming back, he’s been afforded few opportunities under Amorim and has under-performed when given a chance. 

21. Ayden Heaven

Heaven is only nine outings deep into his United career so it’s quite hard to judge his merits. 

But bringing him in from Arsenal was a coup and there’s every reason to believe that the 19-year-old, who has looked solid enough in his cameos, will improve as the months go pass. 

20. Sofyan Amrabat  

It was pretty obvious soon after Ten Hag signed Amrabat on loan that he wasn’t at the level required but, again, he was nothing if not a trier. 

Struggled for large parts but enjoyed an impressive end to his sole season for United and started the club’s victorious FA Cup final against Man City. 

19. Manuel Ugarte  

Has failed to live up to expectations set by his £50million transfer fee and is now Amorim’s fourth-choice centre-midfielder. 

Ugarte likely has the remaining six months of this season to save his career in English football. It started more promisingly but he is struggling to find a way past Bruno Fernandes, Casemiro, and Kobbie Mainoo. 

18. Joshua Zirkzee 

The Dutchman has shown glimpses of his undoubted technical ability, particularly during his first season at the club, but has fallen badly out of favour this term. 

Before his start against Everton on Monday, Zirkzee had played just 90 minutes of football all season. His career at Old Trafford looks set to be over soon. The £36.5m fee to sign him from Bologna? Largely down the drain. 

17. Benjamin Sesko 

On paper, Sesko should have been a good signing. Young, a relentless goalscorer in the Bundesliga, and somebody who delayed his arrival in the Premier League by a couple of years to hone his craft.

So far, their £73.7m toy has not gone to plan. Sesko looks like a deer caught in the headlights. Unable to finish his dinner and not physical enough. But there’s hope he will come good after years of showing strong potential.   

16. Mason Mount 

The attacking midfielder has spent most of his time as United’s No 7 out injured. He’s shown promise, at times, but a return of five goals in 56 appearances is nowhere near good enough. 

He’s lucky that, in Amorim, he has a manager who trusts him. Would he be worth anywhere near the £60m United paid to snatch him off Chelsea in 2023 nowadays? No. 

15. Jonny Evans  

Despite being signed as cover for an injury crisis, Evans’ return to United was actually a pretty successful one. 

Dependable whenever he was called on and offered valuable experience to a struggling Red Devils backline. 

14. Patrick Dorgu  

Having moved from Serie A minnows Lecce last January for £29.4m, the 21-year-old’s stint in the Premier League has been promising, but not outstanding. 

He needs to work on his end product, that’s for sure, but Dorgu has plenty of attributes – strength, power, speed – which could make him a valuable asset for United in years to come. 

13. Marcel Sabitzer 

Enjoyed a pretty successful six months on loan at United alongside Casemiro in midfield and was part of the team who won the Carabao Cup in 2022-23. 

Contributed some important goals, particularly in Europe.

12. Leny Yoro

Yoro is still yet to fully convince his doubters since joining from Lille for a hefty £52m in the summer of 2024 but Amorim sees his long-term potential and starts him consistently. 

He has had to overcome challenges – notably high-profile criticism from Thierry Henry and injury problems last season – but he is carving out regular minutes in the back three. 

11. Christian Eriksen 

The Eriksen who signed for Manchester United in 2022 is not the same Dane who orchestrated Tottenham’s midfield for seven years but he deserves all the credit for returning to the elite level after his cardiac arrest in June 2021. 

After joining on a free, he clearly still had his class and his partnership with Casemiro in 2022-23 was among United’s best midfields of recent years. 

10. Senne Lammens

Finally, a goalkeeper United can trust? Nobody expected much when the Red Devils signed the Belgian for £21.7m from Royal Antwerp. Peter Schmeichel was distinctly unimpressed.

But he has proven to be a safe pair of hands, somethinhg United have not been able to enjoy in recent years, and Sir Alex Ferguson has already hailed him as ‘outstanding’. It’s early days, though. 

9. Matheus Cunha 

Cunha has a lot of potential to be a very popular United star in coming years – he’s got the flair, the directness, the dribbling skills. 

Bringing in a verified Premier League talent (£62.5m from Wolves) looked a good move after years of spaffing money on unknown quantities. But there’s an elephant in the room: so far he’s only scored one goal.  

8. Noussair Mazraoui

Mazraoui’s versatility is an important asset for Amorim. He even filled in at No 10 in one game against Fenerbahce under Erik ten Hag!

While a solid option, United fans are probably looking for more end product from wing-back. Then again, at a £17m fee from Bayern Munich last season, more patience can be afforded. 

7. Lisandro Martinez

Martinez left his doubters red-faced in his first season at Old Trafford after questions over whether a 5ft 9in centre-back would be able to cope with the physicality of the Premier League. 

Unfortunately his injury record has inhibited his impact, but there’s no doubting that when he is firing on all cylinders, he’s one of the best they’ve got. This is a premium signing (£55m from Ajax) which, in terms of his overall form, has paid off.

6. Raphael Varane

A consummate professional and leader who set the standards. 

Varane enjoyed three good years at Old Trafford between 2021 and 2024 after signing from Real Madrid in his prime for £34m. It is such a shame he has had to retire because of his knee. 

5. Matthijs de Ligt 

We’re finally seeing Matthijs de Ligt live up to the potential he showed at Ajax. He’s played every single minute in the Premier League this season and United would be much weaker without him. 

He says he suffered his dip in recent years because injuries damaged his confidence in his body. Now, fit as a fiddle, he can flourish and pay back the £42.5m United splashed to bring him from Bayern Munich in the first place. 

4. Cristiano Ronaldo 

This one is complicated and such a high ranking may prove controversial. 

In 2021-22, on his epic return, Ronaldo had one of the best individual seasons of any United star in the last decade; 24 goals was a superb haul, and his commercial appeal was gargantuan, especially given he joined on a free. In four hours, he exceeded their shirt sale record for an entire day! Say what you like, Ronaldo is box-office. 

But everything fell apart in that short-lived second season due to his explosive interview with Piers Morgan and subsequent falling-out with Erik ten Hag. It sullied his United legacy slightly. 

He came in for criticism for his lack of defensive work, but there’s no denying that he treated fans to moments of world-class quality. 

3. Amad Diallo  

Amad is just a breath of fresh air, isn’t he? His speed, technical ability, and creative mind is a gift on the flank.

He perfectly fits Amorim’s system – so much so that the Portuguese gaffer has admitted he needs another wing-back like the 23-year-old! Having joined in a £37million deal from Atalanta in 2021, he is blossoming into the player they need. 

2. Casemiro

It’s beautiful to see Casemiro’s redemption arc. So majestic in his first season, so maligned in his second and third, it feels like justice to see the legendary Brazilian make himself indispensible once again.

With Casemiro on the pitch this season, United have conceded four goals. Without him? That rises to 16. And that’s despite the fact that he’s playing most of the time!  

What’s more, he’s chipping in with goals. Three so far this season – as many as Bruno Fernandes and Cunha combined. His fourth season, after joining from Real Madrid for £40m in 2022, could yet be his best. 

1. Bryan Mbeumo

An oven-ready signing who gives United fans hope. Mbeumo typifies the sort of signing United should be making at the moment; proven Premier League talents who still have another level to give. 

Six goals so far, and four of those have come in his last five Premier League games. When he’s not breaking the net, he’s making lung-busting runs in behind the defence, pressing relentlessly, and connecting play. 

It was no surprise to see him awarded the Premier League’s player of the month for October. The No 1 has quickly endeared himself to the fanbase.  Then again, for £71m from Brentford, you’re expecting that.