Erik ten Hag's worst Man Utd signings and how much he spent at Old Trafford
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Erik ten Hag faced plenty of criticism over his signings and recruitment before Manchester United sacked him as manager on Monday.
Antony and Casemiro are often mentioned as two of Ten Hag’s worst buys, with one pundit claiming the former would struggle in the second-tier Championship.
The Red Devils have finally decided to get rid of Ten Hag, though, with Sunday’s defeat to West Ham the final straw after a horrific start to the 2024-25 season.
As United begin the search for a new permanent boss, Metro has taken a look Ten Hag’s worst signings across his two-year spell and how much money he spent…
How much money did Erik ten Hag spend in total as Man Utd manager?
Manchester United have spent a total of £617,000,000 on 21 players across five transfer windows since Ten Hag took charge ahead of the 2022-23 campaign.
They are the second biggest spenders in the Premier League across that period, with only Chelsea (£1,300,000,000) having splashed out more.
Who were Erik ten Hag’s worst signings as Manchester United manager?
Antony is considered by many to be among the very worst players United signed under Ten Hag.
Ten Hag worked with Antony at former club Ajax and paid the Dutch club £85m to bring the Brazilian winger to Old Trafford in 2022.
He hasn’t come close to justifying that transfer fee, though, producing just 12 goals and five assists across 87 games to date.
Every player Man Utd signed under Erik ten Hag
- Antony – £85m
- Rasmus Hojlund – £72m
- Casemiro – £70m
- Mason Mount – £60m
- Lisandro Martinez – £57m
- Leny Yoro – £52m
- Manuel Ugarte – £50.8m
- Andre Onana – £47.2m
- Matthijs de Ligt – £43m
- Joshua Zirkzee – £36m
- Noussair Mazraoui – £17m
- Tyrell Malacia – £14.6m
- Altay Bayindir – £4.3m
- Christian Eriksen – Free
- Jonny Evans – Free
- Sofyan Amrabat – Loan (£8.5m)
- Sergio Reguilon – Loan (no fee)
- Marcel Sabitzer – Loan (undisclosed or no fee)
- Wout Weghorst – Loan (£2.5m compensation to cancel Besiktas loan, £2.6m fee to Burnley)
- Martin Dubravka – Loan (£2m)
- Jack Butland – Loan (undisclosed or no fee)
Casemiro is also widely thought to be one of Ten Hag’s worst signings with the club paying out a eyebrow-raising £70m to recruit him from Real Madrid.
United’s decision to make Casemiro the fourth-most expensive midfielder of all time at the time of his move – and one of the highest-paid players in the Premier League – was questionable, given that Casemiro was already 30 years of age.
Pundit Jamie Carragher said in May that Casemiro was no longer good enough for the Premier League and should move to Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States or the Saudi Pro League.
Mason Mount arrived at Old Trafford under Ten Hag’s management too and he is another player who has failed to justify his hefty transfer fee thus far.
Mount, who has struggled with various injury problems, has only managed 25 appearances since he joined the club in July 2023 in a deal worth £60m.
Even when he is fit, the England international hasn’t looked at his best and has struggled to get into the United XI ahead of captain Bruno Fernandes.
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