'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Manchester United are the most successful club in English football, especially in the Premier League era. Unsurprisingly, some of the best players to have graced the sport have worn the club's jersey over the years.
Thanks to their illustrious history, rich pedigree, and fabulous scouting network, Manchester United have also been home to a bevvy of unpolished gems who later blossomed into superstars. A few cases in point would be Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.
Five players that got away from Manchester United
Despite the club being in the midst of a prolonged lean spell in recent times, the likes of Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood have earned rich plaudits for their impressive displays that have belied their young years.
However, United haven't always struck gold in terms of recruiting or retaining the right talent. Manchester United are indeed culpable of letting go precociously talented players, or ones of known pedigree who went on to flourish elsewhere after leaving Old Trafford.
On that note, let us have a look at five such players, in no particular order, whom Manchester United prematurely jettisoned.
#5 Wilfried Zaha
After honing his skills at Crystal Palace's academy, a 21-year-old Wilfried Zaha arrived at Manchester United in the summer of 2013.
Zaha was the last player signed by Manchester United's legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson, but only made his debut in the 2013-14 season, after Sir Alex had departed.
Zaha is versatile enough to be deployed as a winger, but was never afforded enough opportunities at United. Under the tutelage of David Moyes, Zaha was restricted to only four games all season, before he was loaned back to Crystal Palace, who later signed him permanently.
The striker's former teammate Glen Murray said that had Ferguson stayed at Manchester United, Zaha had the wherewithal to blossom into a world-class player.
"I believe that if Sir Alex (Ferguson) still would have been in charge, he (Zaha) would have been one of the best players out there now."
#4 Angel Gomes
Angel Gomes, a Manchester United academy graduate, etched his name into the club's history books when he came on to replace Wayne Rooney in the last game of the 2016-17 season.
In the process, the then 16-year-old became the youngest player to play for Manchester United in the Premier League.
However, the honeymoon period did not last too long for the much-touted attacking midfielder. A paucity of first-team opportunites forced the diminutive player to reject a contract extension at Old Trafford and try his luck elsewhere.
"I don’t know what the talks are behind the scenes. Angel’s a top kid. Of course, there are people around him that advise him to do different things. If he doesn’t sign, all the best to Angel and I’m going to follow his career. If he signs for us, let’s kick on," Solskjaer said about Gomes.
Gomes made a grand total of ten appearances for the club in three seasons before opting to join French club Lille this summer.
On loan at Boavista now, Gomes has already scored thrice in five games this season. Considering his exploits in his new surroundings, he could be another fine player whom Manchester United have let go, despite a number of academy players prospering under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
#3 Memphis Depay
After making his name at PSV Eindhoven, Memphis Depay arrived at Manchester United in the summer of 2015 with much hype and fanfare.
The forward, who inherited the iconic number seven jersey at Old Trafford, made a bright start by scoring in his first few games in the Premier League and in the Champions League.
However, the Dutch forward struggled to keep pace with the physicality of the Premier League, and was soon shunned to the bench. Depay would make 53 appearances in all competitions for the club, scoring seven goals, before he was sold off to Lyon in January 2017.
Depay has since gone on to flourish at the French club, evolving into one of the most-sought-after strikers in Europe, leaving Manchester United to ponder what might have been.
Jose Mourinho later explained the rationale behind letting go Depay, when he said:
"If I can find a little reason it's to say that he's a player from one position – the only position where we have over-booking. He is a winger and wingers is what we have more. So it's the position where it's more difficult to have chances, where it's more difficult to be the next choice, because it's a position we never have problems."
#2 Angel Di Maria
Angel Di Maria arrived at Manchester United in the summer of 2014 after winning the Champions League with Real Madrid, and reaching the FIFA World Cup final with Argentina.
With proven goal-scoring and goal-creating prowess, the winger made a decent start to life at Old Trafford. However, he found himself relegated to the bench in the second half of the season after a reported altercation with then-Manchester United manager Louis Van Gaal.
The relationship between player and manager apparently degraded to such an extent that the £60 million man left Manchester United for Paris St. Germain at the end of the season, after only providing fleeting glimpses of his potential.
Di Maria, who rediscovered his mojo at his new surroundings, has become an integral player at PSG. He has scored 85 goals and provided 95 assists in all competitions for the French champions.
The former Real Madrid player has won a plethora of domestic titles at the club and also took them to their maiden Champions League final last season, where PSG fell to Bayern Munich.
In a later interview, Di Maria opened up about his struggles at Manchester United, when he said:
"I was at Manchester and everything was fine with Van Gaal during the first two months. After one fight, things weren't the same. The relationship wasn’t the same. The fight with Van Gaal occurred because he was always showing me bad and negative things and all that held me back. One day I fought with him. I told him I didn’t want to see those things anymore, that I was doing things well and asked him why he wasn’t showing me good things. He did not like how I spoke to him and from there the whole problem started."
#1 Gerard Pique
Gerard Pique has to be one of the biggest players who got away from Manchester United and went on to make his name at another club.
Pique honed his skills at Barcelona's famed La Masia academy before arriving at Old Trafford in 2004 as a precocious 17-year-old. However, over the next four years, he played only 17 games for the club before he was sold back to the Blaugrana, where the player evolved to become one of the finest centre-backs in the game.
The 33-year-old became a key player for his boyhood club, winning honours galore that included a rich haul of eight La Liga titles and three Champions League trophies.
Former Manchester United coach Rene Meulensteen later opened up about Pique's exit from Old Trafford and the English club's potential regrets, if any, in this regard.
"The reason why Pique was gone was that Gerard was a very strong minded person. He knew exactly what he wanted and he knew he was good enough to play first team football. However, was Gerard the ideal and right centre-back for a league like the Premier League? It has to be said 'not too sure'. I'm sure he would have become okay because I'm a big fan of Gerard, but the proof is in the pudding for him — he made the right decision. He's one of the most decorated players."
Pique, on his part, does miss the 'good' life at Manchester United but has no qualms about moving back to Barcelona.
"I'm a big fan of British humour, it was what I loved about Manchester. They don't get offended when you play tricks on them. They try to get you back, but they don’t complain. Here at Barca, my humour hasn't always been appreciated by everyone. I deflate team-mates' tires and other things, but this is nothing compared to what happened at United. It was a dressing room full of life."
