To be fair, Sancho’s time at Old Trafford was not very impressive. The 23-year-old has struggled to perform at his best upon his return to England. After publicly responding and criticizing Erik ten Hag, Sancho was removed from the squad. Now, the English star is returning to Dortmund on loan for the rest of the season.
Man United have never fully exploited Sancho’s strengths, after paying around £73 million to bring him to Old Trafford in the summer of 2021. But Sancho is not the only big name to arrive in Manchester during the transfer window there.
Let’s take a look at the 4 players that the Red Devils signed with Sancho and see how they have performed since then…
Raphael Varane
The level of expectations is very high, Man United spent about 40 million pounds on Real Madrid to get the French defender. Since arriving at Old Trafford, Varane has easily become one of the best defenders at the club, although he has missed quite a few games due to injury.
Speculation surrounding Varane’s long-term future at Man United has been continuously rising, as he is no longer the number 1 choice in Ten Hag’s eyes.
Cristiano Ronaldo The Portuguese superstar somewhat overshadowed Sancho when he arrived at Old Trafford in 2021, in a transfer that attracted attention throughout the world of football.
Although Ronaldo’s goal-scoring instincts were still very sharp when he returned to Man United, things quickly became tense between him and Ten Hag. The drama surrounding Ronaldo reached its peak during his second season with the club. After a shocking interview with Piers Morgan, CR7 had to pack up and leave Old Trafford.
Since then, Man United has continued to perform erratically, while the former Real Madrid star still does commendable things. Ronaldo is currently the highest-paid footballer in the world and finished the 2023 calendar year with a record 54 goals. He can’t seem to stop scoring goals for Al-Nassr.
Paul McShane This experienced defender joined Man United in the summer of 2021 as a player-coach. He has never appeared in the first team, but has had a number of matches with the Red Devils U23 team.
McShane announced his retirement from playing at the end of the 2021-22 season to focus on his coaching role. Currently, he still works at the club as a coach in charge of the Professional Development Phase. In addition, McShane also works as an assistant coach for the Republic of Ireland U21 team.
Tom Heaton The 37-year-old goalkeeper joined Man United in 2021. Heaton was often third choice during his time with the club, and has had a number of first-team appearances. He made two appearances in the League Cup last season. His experience will certainly be useful for young players at this time.
