Manchester United have not been shy about splashing the cash in the last decade. In fact, since no side has a higher net spend in the last 10 seasons than the Red Devils.
Despite a net expenditure of almost £1bn since the 2015/16 summer window, the past decade has largely been a turbulent one at Old Trafford.
Many of the Red Devils' more expensive additions have not gone to plan, but under their new INEOS leadership, they are hoping the most recent summer window's confirmed signings will prove more successful.
Only time will tell if they are – for now though, we’re looking back at the five greatest big-money signings, who embody the resources and rich potential United have, as well as the frustrations that have dogged the club since Sir Alex Ferguson left in 2013.
Many of the Red Devils' expensive additions have not gone to plan, but under their new INEOS leadership, they are hoping this summer's confirmed signings are more successful.
Manchester United most expensive signings: the top five
| Player | Joined from | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| 🇫🇷 Paul Pogba (CM) | Juventus | £89m |
| 🇧🇷 Antony (RW) | Ajax | £81m |
| 🏴 Harry Maguire (CB) | Leicester City | £74m |
| 🏴 Jadon Sancho (RW) | Borussia Dortmund | £72m |
| 🇧🇪 Romelu Lukaku (ST) | Everton | £72m |
1) Paul Pogba – £89m
Honours with Man Utd: UEFA Europa League (2017), EFL Cup (2010, 2017)
Eight years on from his homecoming from Juventus, Paul Pogba's £89m move is still atop Manchester United's list of priciest acquisitions. After leaving United in 2012 for more playing time, Pogba joined Juventus and developed into a world-class player.
A truly complete midfielder, United paid the Turin giants £89m to bring Pogba back to Old Trafford. With the price tag inevitably came quickfire criticisms whenever he wasn’t on top form, but Pogba was better at United than he is often given credit for, ultimately averaging 0.44 goal contributions per league game for the Red Devils.
It was hoped that a UEFA Europa League triumph in 2017 would spark a success story. However, he could not bring the big honours back to Old Trafford, and made high-profile errors throughout his time there. Injury issues also began to nag at Pogba's form in his final season, and he subsequently moved back to Juventus on a free transfer.
However, any hopes of him recapturing the impressive form shown in his first spell with the Bianconeri are now surely dead in the water, with the Frenchman being given a four-year ban for doping in February 2024. As it stands, he will return to the sport just a month shy of his 35th birthday.
2) Antony – £81m
Honours with Man Utd: EFL Cup (2023), FA Cup (2024)
Antony was regarded as a talented player at Ajax, but United massively overpaid to reunite him with former boss Erik ten Hag at £81m, plus some hefty add-ons.
His United debut was dreamlike, as he scored an ice-cold opener against old enemy Arsenal at Old Trafford. But since then, it has largely been downhill for the Brazilian winger.
The 24-year-old has duly become a figure of ridicule online, and along with fellow Brazilian flop Casemiro, is often held up as a symbol of the club's malaise.
Little has changed so far in 2024/25, with Antony playing just a single minute of United’s 2-1 loss to Brighton on matchday two.
He has otherwise been consigned to the bench in league action, though it remains to be seen whether or not he can use the UEFA Europa League as a hook back into the first-team picture.
3) Harry Maguire – £74m
Honours with Man Utd: EFL Cup (2023), FA Cup (2024)
Like Pogba, Maguire has been better for Manchester United than he is often given credit for. In mitigation for his faults, there has been a veritable roundabout of managers during his time at Old Trafford, since joining from Leicester in 2019.
Even without a consistent partner at the back, he has shown flashes of intelligence and ball-carrying skill. However, his lack of pace and high-profile errors have also made him an easy target for enraged supporters, as well as costing United in big moments.
His personal record against the five other teams widely considered ‘members’ of the Premier League’s ‘big six’ is also a significantly negative one (W23, D13, L38*).
This only fuels the fires of discontent, with true, Ferguson-era ‘big-game’ defenders such as Rio Ferdinand, Steve Bruce and Jaap Stam proving elusive at Old Trafford.
*Correct as of 24th September 2024
4) Jadon Sancho – £72m
Honours with Man Utd: EFL Cup (2023)
Manchester United expended great time, effort and (of course!) money on bringing Sancho to Old Trafford. Sancho had become a bona fide footballing sensation since leaving rivals Manchester City for Borussia Dortmund at 17.
The winger scored 50 and assisted 58 in 137 appearances for Die Schwarzgelben. But when United got Sancho in 2021, they didn't seem to know what to do with him, and the youngster struggled.
Sancho had a high-profile falling out with Erik ten Hag in 2023, and was exiled back to Dortmund on loan, though the two have since reconciled.
United fans hoping to see Sancho's prodigious talent finally flourish this season may yet do so – but with the estranged winger instead plying his trade in the blue of Chelsea, after a loan switch late in the summer transfer window.
5) Romelu Lukaku – £72m
Honours with Man Utd: None
Also one of Chelsea's priciest additions, Romelu Lukaku has had an awful lot of money spent on him. United spent big to bring the Belgian striker from Everton, where he had just scored 26 and assisted six across 39 appearances in 2016/17.
Lukaku did not play poorly for United, averaging over a goal every other game, but he never seemed to fit in and was ultimately unhappy at the club. He left for Inter for £63m in the summer of 2019, and has since done the rounds at Chelsea, Roma and current club Napoli.
