5 former Manchester United players who now play for clubs you didn't know about

Obertan (left) plays second-tier football in the USA while Tosic (right) is in Kazakhstan!
Obertan (left) plays second-tier football in the USA while Tosic (right) is in Kazakhstan!

#3 Alexander Buttner - RKC Waalwijk

Everton v Manchester United - Premier League
Everton v Manchester United - Premier League

Alex Buttner joined Manchester United from Vitesse Arnhem on a five-year deal in 2012, after a season which saw him being named the Dutch club's player of the year. Buttner was possibly seen by Sir Alex Ferguson as the long-term successor to Patrice Evra.

He made a brilliant debut for the Red Devils, scoring, assisting and winning Man of the Match against Wigan Athletic. He also got on the scoresheet in the famous 5-5 draw against West Brom, which marked Sir Alex's last game in charge for Manchester United.

But Buttner was never able to kick on in the first team under his successor, with David Moyes preferring Evra as his first-choice left-back. The situation only looked worse after Moyes was replaced by Louis van Gaal and as such the defender was sold to Dynamo Moscow in 2014.

Buttner spent two and a half seasons at Dynamo, which included a short loan spell at Anderlecht before returning to Vitesse on a free transfer in January 2017.

Buttner had a brilliant second spell with Vitesse, scoring six goals and providing 16 assists in 94 appearances across two and a half seasons. He also managed to win the Dutch Cup during his time there before joining the New England Revolution in the MLS in 2020.

The 32-year-old is now back in Eredivise after moving to RKC Waalwijk over the summer.


#2 Gabriel Obertan - Charlotte Independence

Manchester United v Bursaspor Kulubu - UEFA Champions League
Manchester United v Bursaspor Kulubu - UEFA Champions League

Signed to replace the departing Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer of 2009, it's fair to say that Gabriel Obertan's career has gone in a completely different direction.

Obertan's impact at Old Trafford was almost negligible as the French winger managed to make just 28 appearances across all competitions for the Red Devils.

The former Bordeaux man was subsequently sold to Newcastle United where he managed to spend five seasons before departing in 2016.

Since then Obertan has had spells at Anzhi, Wigan Athletic and Levski Sofia. He also spent two seasons at Turkish side Erzurumspor before leaving the club this summer.

The winger now plies his trade with American side Charlotte Independence, who play in the second-tier USL Championship. Remarkably, Obertan is still only 32.


#1 Zoran Tosic - Tobol Kostanay

Partizan Belgrade v Viktoria Plzen - UEFA Europa League
Partizan Belgrade v Viktoria Plzen - UEFA Europa League

Midfielder Zoran Tosic was hyped as the next big thing in world football after he arrived at Manchester United. The Serbian was signed for approximately £6.5 million in January 2009.

Tosic had impressed at Partizan during a two-year spell between 2007 and 2009. His performances for Serbia after making his debut in 2007 also earned him rave reviews.

He was linked to various top clubs across Europe and so it was no surprise that Manchester United snapped him up in 2009.

However, Tosic failed to make any kind of impact at Old Trafford. The 34-year-old managed to make just five senior appearances at Manchester United before departing on loan to FC Koln in January 2010.

He was subsequently sold to CSKA Moscow during that summer, where he had a seven-year stint before returning to Partizan in 2017. He spent almost three seasons at Partizan, which also included a Europa League outing against Manchester United.

Tosic left Belgrade to join Chinese second-tier club Taizhaou Yuanda before moving to Kazakhstan with Tobol Kostanay in April this year.

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Edited by Nived Zenith
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