5 players whose careers dipped after joining Manchester United

Sir Alex Ferguson
Sir Alex Ferguson

#3 Juan Sebastien Veron

Aliou Cisse of Birmingham City tackles Juan Sebastien Veron of Manchester United
Aliou Cisse of Birmingham City tackles Juan Sebastien Veron of Manchester United

Juan Sebastien Veron joined Manchester United from Lazio in a deal worth £28 million in 2001, the most expensive transfer in English football at the time.

The Argentine struggled to cope with the physical demands of the Premier League, but excelled for Manchester United in the Champions League.

Veron endured a disappointing first season with the Red Devils, but did improve considerably in his second season.

Sir Alex Ferguson, however, decided to sell Veron to Chelsea ahead of the 2003-04 season.

Veron spent four years at Chelsea but failed to impress, and then went on to spend three years on loan at Inter Milan and Estudiantes.

#2 Radamel Falcao

Falcao was signed to lead the attack at Old Trafford
Falcao was signed to lead the attack at Old Trafford

Radamel Falcao was one of the most feared strikers in Europe ahead of his move to Manchester United. In two seasons with Atletico Madrid, the Columbian scored an astonishing 70 goals in 91 appearances.

After that, he joined AS Monaco, where he scored 11 goals in 19 appearances before suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury.

Many feared the striker would not be the same player after suffering such a serious injury, but Manchester United decided to gamble on him and signed Falcao on a one-year loan deal in the summer of 2014.

Falcao managed just four goals in 29 appearances for the Red Devils, and was a shadow of his former self. The club decided against signing him permanently at the end of the season.

He subsequently joined Chelsea on loan the following season but was unable to make an impact at the Bridge either.

Falcao returned to AS Monaco, where he was able to regain his goal-scoring touch, but was never really able to become the player he was during his time with Atletico Madrid.

#1 Alexis Sanchez

Alexis Sanchez was a big signing for United but failed to deliver
Alexis Sanchez was a big signing for United but failed to deliver

Alexis Sanchez's move to Manchester United is widely regarded as one of the worst transfers in the history of football.

The Chilean was widely regarded as one of the best players in the Premier League prior to his move to Manchester.

Sanchez joined Manchester United on a mammoth £400,000-per-week contract and did little to justify his salary during his time with the club.

The Chilean seemed like he had forgotten how to play football during his season-and-a-half with the Red Devils.

He scored 5 goals in 45 appearances for United before being loaned out to Inter Milan ahead of the 2019-20 campaign.

Sanchez has shown glimpses of his class whilst at Inter, but has been unable to replicate the form he showed when he played for Arsenal.

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