Manchester United FC are the richest club in England and one of the richest clubs in the world of football today. The business model used at United is lauded by experts all over the world as it helps in the better running of the football club. The club is known for producing superstars through their academy, which is one of the best in the world.
The Red Devils are also famous for signing big-money players as well as selling their players at the highest price. United have almost never stopped a player if he wanted to move out and have always capitalized on his value.
Let us now have a look at some of Manchester United’s most expensive departures.
#3-ANGEL DI MARIA –
Angel Di Maria’s stay at Manchester United was a pretty terrible one when he signed for the Red Devils in 2014. The Argentine winger was brought in to Manchester United to become the team’s creator in chief under the guidance of Louis Van Gaal. Di Maria had a good start to his footballing life in England but couldn’t keep up with the Premier League.
To his shock, his house was robbed and after that, his kids and wife were mentally disturbed which concerned Di Maria. His performances on the pitch started dropping and he soon found himself at the wrong side of United fans’ disappointment. In his one year stay at Old Trafford, Di Maria played 35 games in which he scored four goals and provided 12 assists.
The Argentinean was desperate for a move away from United after only one season in the Premier League. He was sold to PSG in 2015 for a reported fee of €63m.
#2-ROMELU LUKAKU –
Romelu Lukaku is one of the best strikers in the world and was the same when he signed for United in 2017. Lukaku was signed from Everton and instantly walked into the team with Ibrahimovic’s long-term replacement and had a great first season. The then United No.9 was one of the best strikers in the Premier League under Jose Mourinho but soon everything changed once Mourinho was sacked.
But as soon as Solskjaer took charge of the Red Devils, he wanted Rashford to be the front-man at United and moved Lukaku to the wings. Lukaku’s style of play didn’t allow him to flourish in the wings and ultimately he lost his place in the starting XI. Thus Lukaku decided to move out of United with interest from Inter Milan and their boss Antonio Conte.
In his two seasons at United, Lukaku scored 42 goals in 96 games but in the summer of 2019, he was sold to Inter Milan for a reported fee of €74m.
#1-CRISTIANO RONALDO –
Arguably one of the greatest footballers of all-time, Cristiano Ronaldo developed from a talented youngster into a goalscoring beast at United. Under Sir Alex Ferguson, Ronaldo became the best player in the Premier League and the world. The Portuguese winger was signed by Sir Alex in 2003 after Ronaldo stunned the Red Devils with his performance against them in a pre-season friendly.
Ronaldo stayed at United for six years, where he won everything possible at club level and almost everything possible on an individual basis as well. It was reported that Real Madrid had a keen eye on the Portuguese talisman and even he had a dream of joining Los Blancos. Ronaldo did exactly that in 2009 when he joined Real Madrid to become the most expensive player in the history of football then.
The Los Blancos signed Ronaldo for a reported fee of €94m and broke the transfer record. Since then United have tried to lure Ronaldo back to Old Trafford but a move has never materialized and he stills remains United’s most expensive departure.
