10 players Man Utd sold too soon, including Barcelona legend and new Chelsea signing | OneFootball

Manchester United have made some poor signings in the transfer market over the years, but they’ve also made a lot of mistakes with their outgoings.

A number of players have thrived away from Old Trafford, leaving United second-guessing their decision to sell them in the first place. Or at least, their decision to sell for a small transfer fee.

We’ve taken a look at 10 players United have sold too soon in the Premier League era.

Jaap Stam

Stam enjoyed a trophy-laden three-year spell at United, winning three Premier League titles, a Champions League, an FA Cup and an Intercontinental Cup, as well as two UEFA Defender of the Year trophies from 1999 and 2000.

But he made a surprise move to Lazio in 2001 following the publication of his controversial book Head to Head, although Sir Alex Ferguson cited fitness concerns as the key reason behind his decision to sell the centre-back.

“At the time he had just come back from an Achilles injury and we thought he had just lost a little bit [of pace],” Ferguson said. “We got the offer from Lazio – £16.5million for a centre-back that was 29. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse.”

But Ferguson’s concerns were misguided as the former Netherlands international thrived in Italy, winning the Coppa Italia for Lazio before reaching the 2005 Champions League final with AC Milan.

“It was one of the mistakes I made, hopefully I haven’t made too many, but that was one,” Ferguson later admitted.

Diego Forlan

Having scored just 17 goals in 98 appearances in all competitions in his two-and-a-half-year spell at United, Forlan is often labelled a Premier League flop.

But he was hampered by limited opportunities at Old Trafford, with Ruud van Nistelrooy and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer both ahead of him in the pecking order.

The Uruguay internatinal moved to Villarreal in search of regular football and established himself as one of football’s most lethal strikers during the second half of the 2000s.

He twice won the European Golden Shoe after finishing as top scorer in La Liga, first with the Yellow Submarine and then at Atletico Madrid, with whom he also won the 2010 Europa League after scoring a brace in the final.

Gerard Pique

Following an impressive loan spell at Real Zaragoza in the 2006-07 season, Pique was tipped for a bright future at United.

But the centre-back was at fault for the only goal in a 1-0 defeat away at Bolton in November 2007 and it left Ferguson convinced that he couldn’t cut it in the English game.

“As a young defender, when you make a mistake like that, the manager simply cannot trust you anymore,” Pique said. “Even if he wants to trust you, he can’t.

“I could tell, literally at the moment that [Nicolas] Anelka controlled the ball, that I had lost the faith of Sir Alex, and probably the faith of most United fans.”

With Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic both in great form, United allowed him to return to his boyhood club Barcelona in a £5million deal in the summer of 2008.

That decision came back to haunt them when the Spain international helped Barcelona beat United in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals.

He won another Champions League title in 2015 and is widely regarded as one of the greatest centre-backs of his generation.

Jonny Evans

Evans benefited from Pique’s departure and became a first-team regular at United, winning three Premier League titles, two League Cups and the Club World Cup.

The Northern Ireland international fell out of favour under Louis van Gaal in the 2014-15 season and was sold to West Bromwich Albion for just £8million.

He won their Players’ Player of the Season award in 2015-16, and his performances at the Hawthorns attracted interest from Arsenal and Manchester City.

The centre-back later moved to Leicester City and won the FA Cup in 2021, before United brought him back to Old Trafford for a second spell in 2023.

Danny Welbeck

A boyhood United fan, Welbeck came through the ranks at Old Trafford and netted 29 goals in 142 appearances for the first team.

Van Gaal’s arrival in the summer of 2014 led to a surprising deadline-day move to Arsenal, with the manager commenting that ‘Welbeck doesn’t have the record of Robin van Persie or Wayne Rooney’.

He knocked United out of the FA Cup in 2014-15, although his time at the Emirates and a brief spell at Watford were both plagued by injury problems.

The striker put those issues behind him in a six-year stint at Brighton and became their all-time top goalscorer in the Premier League before moving to Chelsea this summer.

“I said 10 years ago that Manchester United should never have sold Danny Welbeck,” Gary Neville said. “He’s gone away and done brilliantly well. He’s coming into a little cameo at the end of his career, but he’s a fantastic player.”

Angel Di Maria

After watching Di Maria produce a Man of the Match performance in the 2014 Champions League final, United paid a then-British record fee to secure his signature.

The winger failed to justify that price tag due to his well-documented issues with Van Gaal, and was sold to Paris Saint-Germain after just one season.

But Van Gaal was sacked a year later and replaced by Jose Mourinho, who had previously worked with Di Maria at Real Madrid.

“Manchester United sold players that I never would have sold, and bought players I never would have bought,” Mourinho said. “I would never have sold Di Maria, Chicharito or Danny Welbeck, never, no chance.”

The Argentina international rediscovered his best form at PSG, where he scored 92 goals and registered 120 assists in 295 appearances.

James Garner

Garner impressed at youth level and won the Denzil Haroun Reserve Team Player of the Year award in 2019-20, following in the footsteps of fellow United academy graduates Nicky Butt, John O’Shea and Darren Fletcher.

He had two loan spells at Nottingham Forest and played a crucial role in their promotion to the Premier League in 2021-22, while also impressing in FA Cup games against Arsenal, Leicester City and Liverpool.

But that still wasn’t enough to earn a chance under Erik ten Hag, who sold the midfielder to Everton in a deal worth up to £15million.

He’s since made over 100 Premier League appearances for the Toffees and won their Men’s Player of the Season and Players’ Player of the Season awards in 2025-26.

Anthony Elanga

Elanga enjoyed a breakthrough season in the United first team in 2021-22, and scored a memorable Champions League goal away to Atletico Madrid.

But Ten Hag’s decision to sign Antony from Ajax in an £86million deal saw the winger play a bit-part role at Old Trafford in the 2022-23 campaign.

He was sold to Nottingham Forest for £15million and went from strength to strength at the City Ground, registering 11 goals and 21 assists in 82 appearances.

Forest then made a £40million profit on the Sweden international by selling him to Newcastle United for £55million in the summer of 2025.

Alvaro Carreras

United fought off competition from Barcelona and Manchester City to sign a then-17-year-old Carreras from Real Madrid in 2020, and he won a lot of plaudits at youth level.

Despite Tyrell Malacia undergoing knee surgery and Luke Shaw struggling with his own injury issues, the left-back didn’t make a single first-team appearance for United.

He had loan spells at Preston North End, Granada and Benfica before joining the latter on a permanent £5million deal in the summer of 2024.

The 23-year-old quickly established himself as one of the best young left-backs in Europe, and Real Madrid triggered the £43million release clause in his contract.

Scott McTominay

McTominay came through the academy and made more appearances for United than any other player on this list, representing the first team 255 times in all competitions.

The Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) saw United sell the midfielder to Napoli for £25million to fund a move for Manuel Ugarte, with the sale of homegrown players considered pure profit.

He was at the peak of his powers in a sensational debut season in Italy, winning the Serie A MVP award and leading the club to the Scudetto title in 2024-25.

“Scotty was a player that you look for in a dressing room to get you where you want to be,” former United coach Benni McCarthy said. “To let him go for what was a small transfer fee was a big shame. I think everyone at the club regrets that decision.”