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Manchester United and Sir Alex Ferguson were a match made in heaven. The Red Devils earned an enormous amount of success during the reign of the Scottish manager at Old Trafford.
Sir Alex Ferguson remains the most successful manager in the history of the Premier League with 13 titles. This speaks volumes of the greatness of the legendary manager.
Sir Alex Ferguson leaving Manchester United was heart-breaking
The success that Manchester United saw under Sir Alex Ferguson remains unmatched and therefore it was a very emotional moment when the Scotsman announced his retirement in 2013. Since then, the Red Devils have seen a lot of struggle.
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Four different managers have managed Manchester United post Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement and yet the Premier League giants haven't won the league once.
In the process, there have been some poor transfer decisions made, allowing a number of good players to leave the Red Devils. On that note, let's take a look at those quality players who shouldn't have been sold by Manchester United post Sir Alex Ferguson's era.
#5 Wilfried Zaha
Wilfried Zaha was signed by Manchester United in the winter of 2013 when Sir Alex Ferguson was still their manager. The deal allowed the Ivorian to return to Crystal Palace for the remainder of the season.
The following season. Sir Alex Ferguson retired and his place was taken by David Moyes. Zaha struggled to get regular chances under the former Everton manager, which prompted him to re-join Crystal Palace.
The winger has amazing dribbling skills, good pace and the ability to take on opponents. A player of Zaha's technical capabilities has been missing from Manchester United for quite some time now. Had he not been sold, maybe things would have been different.
#4 Ander Herrera
Post Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement, Ander Herrera was one of the most passionate football players that Manchester United had signed. The Red Devils were persistent in their pursuit of his signature and signed him in the summer of 2014.
The Spaniard was a very skillful and tenacious midfielder. Herrera is known for his aggression, intelligence and passing skills. His man-of-the-match performance against Chelsea in the Premier League, where he man-marked Eden Hazard, is still very much in the memory of Manchester United fans.
Unfortunately, the Red Devils hesitated in offering Ander Herrera a new contract in 2019. He therefore left as a free agent and joined Paris Saint-Germain that summer. A player of his ability is desperately needed at Manchester United right now and it surely wasn't the best call letting him leave.
#3 Daley Blind
Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United had some quality Dutch players. The likes of Jaap Stam, Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Robin Van Persie were phenomenal under the Scottish manager.
After the arrival of Louis van Gaal as Manchester United's manager in 2014, he signed Dutch defender Daley Blind from Ajax. The left-footed footballer was a very versatile player. He could play as a centre-back, left-back and also as a central midfielder.
Blind had the intelligence to read the game, the quality to make incisive passes and the technical awareness in whichever position he played. Manchester United could have benefitted a lot from his services had the Dutchman not been sold by Jose Mourinho in 2018. Blind could have been one of the senior figures to guide the dressing room in the post Sir Alex Ferguson era.
#2 Memphis Depay
Memphis Depay was doing amazingly well at PSV Eindhoven before he joined Manchester United in 2015. The season before he left for the Premier League, he managed to score 22 goals in 30 league appearances in the Eredivisie, playing as a winger.
Under Louis van Gaal, Depay struggled with game time and poor form, which eventually affected his confidence. Former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson did support the former PSV man back then.
But his form didn't get any better with the arrival of Jose Mourinho, after which the Dutch forward left for Lyon. At the French club, he rediscovered his form, scoring 63 goals and recording 39 assists in 139 appearances.
The Dutchman joined Barcelona this summer and is a vital player for the Catalan club. With his smart forward play and goal-scoring abilities, Depay would have been handy at Manchester United only if the Premier League giants had shown more patience with him.
#1 Romelu Lukaku
The Belgian has played for a number of Premier League clubs in his football career. Romelu Lukaku signed for Manchester United in 2017 to play under Sir Alex Ferguson's former rival Jose Mourinho.
He had a pretty decent first season, scoring 16 goals and recording seven assists in the Premier League. In the 2018-19 season, Manchester United were struggling under Mourinho, eventually resulting in the sacking of the Portuguese manager.
Under interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Lukaku couldn't revive his form and was often made a scapegoat for United's poor performances.
The former Everton striker was sold to Inter Milan in the 2019-20 season where he did immensely well. In his two seasons with the Italian giants, he scored 47 goals in 72 Serie A appearances, winning the league once. He returned to Chelsea this summer and is looking like a very dangerous player in front of goal.
Given that he's 28 years old, he has a good amount of time at his disposal. Lukaku's quality as a striker was desperately needed by Manchester United this summer and it was one of the club's mistakes post Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement.
