Ranked: Man United’s top five most expensive signings ever
Manchester United are on the verge of signing Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig.
The Red Devils have seen off competition from Newcastle United to land the Slovenia international, who will cost a handsome fee in the region of £74million (€84.7m).
Should the deal, indeed, be completed, Sesko will become United‘s sixth-most-expensive signing of all time.
With that in mind, how did the five most expensive get on? Well, it’s safe to say that United have not had much success in that regard, placing even more pressure on Sesko’s shoulders.
5 – Romelu Lukaku
From: Everton
Fee: €84.8m
When Man United shelled out £75m on Romelu Lukaku in 2017, they must have felt certain he’d be a success.
After all, the Belgian was coming fresh from a season where he’d netted 25 goals in 37 Premier League outings to sit second only to Harry Kane (29) in the Golden Boot race. Lukaku scored 87 goals in 166 games across all competitions for Everton, leading them to multiple European qualifications and cup semi-finals.
Lukaku’s first season at Old Trafford was promising, scoring 16 Premier League goals and 27 across all competitions, helping the Red Devils finish runner-up in the league and FA Cup under Jose Mourinho.
However, his output dropped to just 12 in the Premier League and 15 overall the following campaign, and Lukaku was swiftly moved on to Inter, where he returned to his best to win a Serie A title.
4 – Jadon Sancho
From: Borussia Dortmund
Fee: €85m
Jadon Sancho was one of the most exciting English prodigies around when United broke the bank for him in 2021.
The winger had just enjoyed a season where he bagged 16 goals and 20 assists in 38 appearances for Dortmund, winning the DFB Pokal, while finishing third in the Bundesliga and reaching the Champions League quarter-finals.
His move to Old Trafford has been a disaster, though.
Sancho has just 12 goals and six assists to his name in 83 appearances, while he’s been loaned back to Dortmund and Premier League rivals Chelsea during the course of the last two seasons. Amongst all of that, the 23-time England international also had a public falling out with former manager Erik ten Hag.
The 25-year-old looks set to depart for a fraction of his initial cost this summer as United clear the deck.
3 – Harry Maguire
From: Leicester City
Fee: €86.6m
Harry Maguire has not been bad for Manchester United. In fact, at times, he’s been one of their far more reliable players.
However, when you cost more than Virgil van Dijk just a year after Liverpool signed their team-defining captain, you simply must deliver the very best, and Maguire hasn’t quite managed that.
Maguire is better at most things than people give him credit for and has often been unfairly made one of the poster boys for this era of struggle at Old Trafford.
But it’s also true that he hasn’t fulfilled the fee paid to sign him.
That said, compared to the rest of this list, Maguire has been a raging success for Man United.
2 – Antony
From: Ajax
Fee: €95m
Here we arrive at one of the worst transfers in English football history, if not the worst.
Manchester United shelled out an eye-watering €95m (£81.3m) to bring Antony on board from Ajax in 2022.
This should have worked. He was Erik ten Hag’s guy and had been superb under the Dutchman during their time together in the Dutch capital.
However, from his fidget spinner moment to ignoring the run of play in favour of falling out with linesmen, Antony has been a disaster, and has just 12 goals and five assists in 96 United appearances to his name.
The Brazilian was much-improved on loan at Real Betis in the second half of last season, hitting nine goals and five assists in 26 games — helping them reach the Uefa Conference League final.
But rather than save his United career, that has only served to prove this was a match made in hell.
1 – Paul Pogba
From: Juventus
Fee: €105m
Paul Pogba is a very difficult player to judge.
Was he objectively bad at Man United? No. In fact, he had plenty of great moments and was undoubtedly an important figure in the Europa League and two EFL Cup successes United enjoyed during his 233 games at the club — which yielded 39 goals and 51 assists.
But was he worth €105m (£89.3m) and status as the club’s record signing? Absolutely not.
Too often, it became the Pogba show, with the focus following the Frenchman rather than the team. What’s more, the likes of Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer often failed to find the best tactical fit for Pogba, who often needed the exact perfect conditions to thrive.
You just cannot afford those sorts of concessions for any player, let alone your record signing.
‘Pogback’ was never quite the sensation it promised to be.