Love them or loath them. Adore them or detest them. Manchester United are one of England’s top dogs.
Old Trafford was initially built on old money, given Man Utd’s position as one of the country’s traditionally successful clubs. But they also managed to usher in an era of domination just as the fortunes began to flow into the Premier League. The lucky devils.
Well, it wasn’t luck really, was it? It was a youth team that boasted a ridiculous amount of talent combined with the managerial prowess of a certain Sir Alex Ferguson. Plus, a cracking amount of commercial clout.
If the Theatre of Dreams is a potential destination, you run to it. Play for a club like Man Utd is an opportunity few players can afford to miss.
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Getting there is just half the job. Staying is another challenge altogether. And not everyone can make the grade.
But there are plenty of players who have had to walk away from Old Trafford and ended up proving their worth elsewhere.
Diego Forlan
When Diego Forlan joined Man Utd in 2002 for £6.9million, the then-22-year-old was tipped for big things in English football. And Sir Alex almost missed out on the Uruguayan’s signature, with Forlan remarkably close to joining Middlesbrough until Man Utd came in with a bigger offer.
Forlan endured a tough first 10 months as a Premier League player, and took what seemed like an eternity to score his first goal. Then he couldn’t remember how to put his shirt on after celebrating!
After two-and-a-half unsuccessful seasons, Forlan left for Villarreal and improved. Then he went to Atletico Madrid and got even better. Forlan even won the Golden Ball at the 2010 World Cup after mastering the Jabulani ball.
It was a case of too much, too young, for Forlan at Man Utd. He retired in 2018 after a brief spell in Hong Kong with Kitchee SC.
Gerard Pique
No one really batted an eyelid when Gerard Pique re-signed for Barcelona for £5 million in 2008. The centre-back had only made a handful of first-team appearances and failed to break through on a consistent basis.
That wasn’t down to Pique’s lack of ability, though. It was the small matter of a partnership between Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand. What did they ever achieve?!
However, given the manner in which he had failed to acclimatise to English football, Pique wasn’t expected to made the grade and Camp Nou either. But he did. In emphatic fashion.
Pique was a linchpin in Barcelona’s defence for several years, winning everything that was there to be won. Even when his performances dipped towards the end of his career, nothing to take away from Pique’s lasting quality.
Wilfried Zaha
Wilfried Zaha had a whirlwind few years between 2013 and 2015. He caught Sir Alex’s eye and joined Man Utd from Crystal Palace in January 2013, before returning to the Eagles on loan for the rest of the season. He helped his boyhood club secure promotion to the Premier League at the expense of fierce rivals Watford.
But David Moyes clearly didn’t fancy the midfielder and Zaha struggled to get the game time he craved. With Man Utd engulfed by a post-Sir Alex crisis, Zaha decided to cut ties and returned to Selhurst Park to prove his worth. It came via a loan spell at Cardiff City, and temporary move to Palace before making it permanent.
He’s certainly proved his worth, and then some. Zaha carved out a solid Premier League career and was a Palace legend when he left. Despite negative press about on-pitch theatrics.
Zaha also opted to represent the Ivory Coast instead of England, which serves as yet more proof that he’s not been afraid to tread a new path along the road to success.
Carlos Tevez
Carlos Tevez has always been a player who has flirted with controversy. Whether it was incurring the wrath of Neil Warnock, or swapping the red half of Manchester for the blue half, and becoming public enemy No.1 at Old Trafford. The Argentine has certainly flown in the face of adversity on many occasions.
Tevez was an essential member of the great Man Utd side that lifted the Champions League in 2008. He formed a potential attack with Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo.
His spell at the Etihad wasn’t too bad either. But bust ups with Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini — and refusing to play in crucial European ties — didn’t do too much to cleanse his image in England.
Life at Juventus proved to be much sweeter though. Tevez picked up two Serie A titles and was unfortunate not to add another Champions League trophy to his cabinet. He proved that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. But who needs to when that old dog was good enough in the first place?
He’s since returned to Old Trafford to score four goals in Soccer Aid 2025, greeted by some fans with boos. A true pantomime villain, Tevez also left the game having clashed with streamer Angry Ginge. Never change, Carlos.
Ben Foster
Sir Alex thought he had found the answer to his goalkeeping problems when he spotted a young Foster playing for Wrexham in the Football League trophy in 2005. It turns out he hadn’t.
Yet a £1 million fee was agreed with parent club Stoke City and Foster had his shot at the big time. Loan spells with Watford helped the shot stopper gain valuable experience in the top tier but Foster failed to bridge the gap to Man Utd’s first-team.
That was mainly due to the presence of the pesky Edwin van der Sar; the big Dutch wall. Foster helped the club claim the Carling Cup trophy in 2009 by saving a penalty in the final, although his iPod also deserved partial credit.
However, Foster soon accepted that he had to leave the Red Devils to play regularly. He was a solid stalwart at Birmingham City, West Brom and Watford in the years that have followed.
Yes, he still had a mistake in him, but he can be very proud of his eight England caps. Saving a Steven Gerrard penalty in front of the Kop might be the moment Man Utd fans remember him for though. And he was part of the Wrexham team to earn promotion back to the Football League.
Memphis Depay
Memphis Depay arrived at Old Trafford in the summer of 2015 amid huge expectations, having torn the Eredivisie to shreds during his spell at PSV.
An immediate impact was widely predicted. But it never came to pass and Depay struggled to adapt to the Premier League – despite appearing to be tailor made for the English game.
He left Man Utd empty-handed and was branded a flop for failing to hit the heights that he had been tipped to reach.
Depay left for Lyon and settled there, with 76 goals in 178 games across four seasons. That earned a move to Barcelona and links of a return to Man Utd. Still only 31, Depay is now playing in Brazil with Corinthians. It’ll be a quiet end to a career, but Depay definitely hit some heights. Let’s not forget that no man has scored more goals for the Netherlands’ national team than Depay’s 50 — level alongside Robin van Persie.
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Tim Howard
Tim Howard was part of the perennial goalkeeper problem that Man Utd struggled to address following the departure of Peter Schmeichel. Like so many others, he failed to provide the answer.
The American was signed in 2003 to rival Fabian Barthez for the No.1 jersey and usurped the Frenchman. But Howard’s confidence went to pieces after his error cost Man Utd a Champions League game against Porto. Roy Carroll replaced him, and Howard continued to make mistakes whenever he was given a nod to play.
Everton gave Howard another chance and he fit into life at Goodison Park like a glove. Considering he was bought for a paltry £3m, we’d say that was money well spent by the Toffees given Howard became one of the division’s best goalkeepers.
He also bossed the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and performed admirably for the Colorado Rapids. What a glorious beard, too.
Paul Pogba
Paul Pogba is an interesting case here. The Frenchman was adamant that he was good enough to play for Man Utd’s first team. But Sir Alex wasn’t. The Scotsman played Rafael in midfield instead, which proved to be the straw that broke the camel’s back. It was a bit of an insult. Rafael struggled at right-back, let alone central midfield.
Juventus snapped the combative midfielder up on a free transfer and he quickly became one of the most highly-rated young players in the world. How do you like them apples, Man Utd?
Well, it turns out they liked them a lot. Of course, they paid a world-record fee to bring Pogba back to Old Trafford. The less said about his return, the better. But he certainly thrived after leaving the first time around.
Angel Gomes
Angel Gomes has made four appearances for the England senior national team. And he may not have made any if he had stayed at Man Utd.
The midfielder game through the academy at Man Utd but was used sparingly by the Red Devils. He made just 10 appearances for the first team, totalling 320 minutes. But 246 of those came in nothing Europa League matches in 2019-20.
Gomes was understandably frustrated with his progress being hampered by a lack of consistent game time. So he left at the end of his contract and joined Lille. After an initial loan to Boavista, Gomes really found his feet at Lille. He played 134 times for the French club with his performances earning an England senior call up. Gomes is now at Marseille after an underwhelming final season at Lille. But there’s room for more improvement, with Gomes not turning 25 until the end of August.
Scott McTominay
Scott McTominay wasn’t a bad player at Man Utd. In fact, he proved clutch on more than one occasion. The Scottish international played 255 times for Man Utd across all competitions and scored 29 goals. But he was still undervalued and underappreciated by Man Utd’s managers — and some fans.
So, McTominay was allowed to leave last summer. And he’s definitely had the last laugh. After just one season, McTominay is already a league winner, claiming the Serie A crown with Napoli. He played 34 times for the Partenopei in the league, scoring 12 goals and providing four assists.
Even though it’s early doors, this is a sale Man Utd will grow to regret. And one McTominay will look back on fondly when he eventually calls time on his career.
Anthony Elanga
Anthony Elanga is still only 23, but he has already proven himself in the two years since leaving Man Utd. Elanga joined Man Utd as a 13-year-old and grew as he rose through the academy.
But he joined the growing list of younger stars who just weren’t able to secure consistent minutes in a frustrating period. So he left for Nottingham Forest. And in two years, Elanga has turned himself into one of the brightest young wingers in the Premier League. The Swede was directly involved in 31 goals in 74 league games for Forest, scoring 11 alongside 20 assists.
His performances earned a move to Newcastle United this summer and he’ll continue to grow under Eddie Howe.
Dean Henderson
Not another goalkeeper? There’s a selection of Man Utd fans who think the Red Devils should have made Dean Henderson their No.1 goalkeeper while David de Gea was still at the club. The Spaniard was showing signs of regression, with mistakes creeping back into his game. Even though he still pulled off reality-defying saves at times.
But Henderson was never really given a fair chance, even with 29 appearances for the Red Devils. So he went out on loan to Sheffield United and then Nottingham Forest, proving himself capable of starting for a Premier League side.
But that still wasn’t enough for Man Utd. Henderson left for Crystal Palace in 2023 and became their No.1, winning the FA Cup at the end of the 2024-25 season. Henderson played his part in the final too, saving a penalty from Omar Marmoush (though he was also fortunate not to have been sent off).