The 10 best Man Utd signings of the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era ft. Fernandes & Ronaldo | OneFootball

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Manchester United have been less of an imperious force since their long-standing manager Sir Alex Ferguson retired from management and this can be loosely attributed to the poor recruitment strategy during the windows.

Many managers and players have come and gone since and the majority can be noted down as a bitter disappointment; however, there are a select few players that have impressed the Old Trafford faithful.

The club ended their six-year trophy drought in Erik ten Hag’s first campaign at the helm, though the Dutchman has viewed this summer as a means of bolstering the squad even further.

Deals for both Mason Mount and Andre Onana have been completed with the duo shining in United’s pre-season tour in the United States, while Rasmus Højlund is on the verge of sealing a deal with the 20-time English champions.

Credit where credit is due – they have been ruthless in their decision-making this window, though this cannot be said for previous campaign.

Whether the trio Onana, Mount and Hojlund will hit the ground running once the Premier League campaign starts this month remains a mystery at the time of writing, meaning they are not able to be included in this list.

So, that begs the question: who has been the club’s best signing since their perennial winner Ferguson upped and left a decade ago?

10 Alejandro Garnacho

The teen sensation has become Ten Hag’s ever-reliable substitute option, popping up with key moments from the bench on the regular last term, though it’s important for United supporters to remain grounded.

£100,000 is all it cost to snare the talent away from Atlético Madrid in 2020, but that now looks like peanuts given how he has unearthed into one of the Premier League’s brightest prospects. He settled for one year in the academy set-up and won a FA Youth Cup in that sequence, an achievement that piqued the interest from the first teamers.

Despite being away from action after suffering an ankle ligament injury for two months, the Argentinian starlet concluded his first season under Ten Hag with five goals and assists apiece. He may still be in the formative years of his career, but should he continue his prominence in United’s proceedings, he could turn out to be one of United’s best ever signings.

9 Ander Herrera

STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND - JANUARY 21: Wayne Rooney of Manchester United (L) celebrates scoring his sides first goal with Ander Herrera of Manchester United (R) during the Premier League match between Stoke City and Manchester United at Bet365 Stadium on January 21, 2017 in Stoke on Trent, Wayne Rooney scores his 250th goal for Manchester United in all competitions, which makes him the club's top goal scorer of all time. He surpasses the record previously held by Sir Bobby Charlton. (Photo by

Best known for his touch-tight performance on Chelsea’s Eden Hazard, that was the epitome of Ander Herrera.

Like a younger version of Sir Alex Ferguson’s perfect professional Park Ji-sung, the Spaniard would fulfil any role given to him by the manager, though he also impressed with his laser-like passing.

Herrera made the £29m-rated switch to the red side of Manchester from Athletic Club in 2014, though a deal almost materialised a summer earlier. The 2013 move only derailed as his supposed ‘lawyers’ were instead imposters who Herrera had actually never met.

Hererra best performed under the watchful eye of Jose Mourinho and found himself as one of his compatriot’s most loyal players, despite being far from his best player in terms of talent. Also a fan favourite during his stint in M16, Herrera would leave it all out on the pitch, which is an attribute the United fans adored.

8 Cristiano Ronaldo

If United fans can look past his drama-filled exit, which was fuelled by TV personality Piers Morgan, there’s no doubt that his 18-goal domestic return helped United avoid a bitterly disappointing finish, although they did only manage to finish in a Europa League spot.

Glimpses of a fresh-faced Madeira-born youngster lit up Old Trafford as Ronaldo netted twice against Newcastle United upon his long-awaited return.

United – and Ronaldo - were slandered for becoming a worse outfit when the Portugal international was involved in proceedings, especially as they finished the 2021/22 campaign with their lowest points tally of the Premier League era.

7 Raphael Varane

Raphael Varane brings a state of calmness and composure to United’s backline, which is quite the opposite of his Argentinian counterpart Martinez.

But that’s why they are Ten Hag’s ever-present partnership choice – they balance each other out.

United forked out a whopping £50m for the seasoned centre-back as Varane was introduced with the view of fixing a lacklustre defensive line. Since his move, his influence has been best highlighted when he has not played, considering the downfall from himself to either Harry Maguire or Victor Lindelof.

To showcase how important Varane is to United, United lost 12 matches last season, and Varane was absent for seven of those.

6 Juan Mata

Mata became David Moyes’ second signing at the club, but would often shy away from the spotlight, while remaining a persistently emphatic performer.

Mata was a fantastic servant for the club but became an eternal substitute, which seriously showed a lack of respect towards someone of his stature seeing as he arrived as one of the club’s most high-profile January signings.

His off-field persona made him such a loveable figure among fans and those who worked at the club and was happy to be deployed in less-than-ideal positions across the front line and the midfield department.

5 Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Mercurial centre-forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic joined United in 2016 at the worrying age of 34, though the towering Swede proved ‘age is just a number’.

28 goals in his first campaign was enough for the doubts to be swept under the carpet.

But, this was already in action as the journeyman announced himself to the Premier League in his first few matches. He scored in the Community Shield final against Leicester, against Bournemouth on his Premier League bow and on his first match at Old Trafford against Southampton.

The best bit about the transfer? He cost nothing.

Though, he struggled to return to his goalscoring best after a cruel injury against Anderlecht, which ruled him out of the Europa League final in 2017. The following season, Ibra endured just a litany of appearances, but has continued his illustrious career at LA Galaxy and AC Milan.

Ibra drew the curtains on his playing career in June 2023 as he creeped the wrong side of 40.

4 Lisandro Martínez

Lisandro Martínez’s arrival has marked a changing of the guard and his front-footed nature and fearlessness in duels has caught the attention of the world, even if it is not for the right reasons.

Although his Marcos Rojo-like tackling leaves him vulnerable to picking up a card or two every now and again, it is that tenacity and aggression which makes him such a popular figure at the club.

Initially mocked for his small stature, Martinez makes us for his lack of size with his top-tier passing ability, which not only relieves the backline of pressure but has often spruced his side into an attack.

Unfortunately for the World Cup winner, his debut season at Old Trafford came to a stop earlier this year when he suffered a fractured metatarsal and his absence ushered a shadow of doubt over United’s top four challenge, although they managed to eventually get it over the line.

3 Luke Shaw

Previously at the seaside outfit Southampton, England international Luke Shaw impressed on his debut at Old Trafford; which, in turn, transformed then boss David Moyes into a keen fan.

Despite the Scotsman first revering a move for Shaw, he was given the boot before the club signed him for £30m in the summer of 2014. As expected, the left-back continues to show the English top-flight why he was so sought after, though his progression was nastily put to a stop thanks to a double leg fracture picked up against PSV.

Recognised as one of the club’s most consistent performers, he has had quite the topsy-turvy career in the football-crazed city after being lampooned by Jose Mourinho, but now one of the first names of the team sheet for the Dutch tactician.

Able to shift infield, Shaw has become a hugely indispensable asset for the club, also given he is one of the long-standing members of the club’s talent-ladened squad.

2 Casemiro

A sound defensive midfielder had been missing for a while after season upon season of relying on ‘McFred’ at the base of the midfield. And who better to get in to fix it?

The five-time Champions League winner Casemiro joined the Premier League stalwarts last summer and has made a somewhat miraculous change to the middle of the park at the Theatre of Dreams. Signed for £60m, United have certainly got their money’s worth, despite claims they had over-spent for a 30-year-old.

Commonly known for his capability to disrupt attacks and provide a much-needed bite when protecting the backline.

1 Bruno Fernandes

There can be little argument about Bruno Fernandes being United’s best signing since Ferguson’s 2013 departure and that can partly down to his incredible versatility.

He has operated as a box-to-box central midfielder, a second striker, a right-winger, a holding midfielder – and has rarely looked out of place. A worthy successor to Maguire as the club’s skipper

In the regular absence of Harry Maguire during the 2022/23 season, Fernandes would don the armband seeing as Ten Hag viewed him as captain material.