So many players have shown their quality before failing to live up to expectations at Manchester United.
You could argue that Paul Pogba is the finest example of this having been at United, left to become a superstar at Juventus and then returned to largely blow hot and cold at Old Trafford.
Just look down the list of United’s record signings and you will see player after player who came in for big cash but didn’t live up to the billing.
Jadon Sancho, Romelu Lukaku, Antony, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Donny van de Beek, the list just goes on and on and on.
United has almost become a graveyard of underwhelming signings and fans have been left perplexed by how such talented players have flopped upon arriving at Old Trafford.
Ineos are now trying to change the entire direction of the club to stop this kind of thing from happening, but the last 10 years have been very difficult.
Andreas Pereira on Angel di Maria
One of the most frustrating cases surrounds Angel Di Maria.
Louis van Gaal’s first summer as United boss saw Di Maria arrive from Real Madrid in a record £59.7million deal.
This really set pulses racing as Di Maria had just won the Champions League with Real and helped Argentina reach the World Cup final.
The early signs were promising; Di Maria’s nonchalant chip against Leicester City was the sign of star power.
However, Di Maria just didn’t settle in the Premier League and failed to consistently show his best form before being sold to Paris Saint-Germain just a year after his arrival.
Di Maria has gone on to win trophy after trophy, including the 2022 World Cup final, with United pretty much the only club where he struggled.
Former United midfielder Andreas Pereira has now told Rio Ferdinand’s Vibe with Five that Di Maria was simply ‘unbelievable’ in United training.
Pereira claims that everybody inside United thought that Di Maria would bring a league title to Old Trafford because he was just that ‘amazing’.
Pereira noted that Di Maria struggled to settle but his struggles highlighted the immense pressure at the club, as even Di Maria – who had been with Real Madrid for years – couldn’t hack it.
“Di Maria when he arrived from the first session he did. He was unbelievable. He arrived from the Champions League final being the best player. He did the first session and everyone said – seriously, everyone said – we are going to win the league. This guy is amazing.”
“I didn’t know what happened, it was crazy. He didn’t adapt, and then the thing happened with his family, I think this has a big thing to do. [I saw] a big player like this cannot play at United, the pressure is there. It’s difficult to play for United and wear the seven, it’d difficult,” he added.
READ MORE: Manchester United transfer history 2013 to present day
United’s number seven
Pereira’s last point there highlights the difficulty of wearing the number seven shirt at United, with all the pressure which comes with it.
The likes of Bryan Robson, Denis Law, George Best, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo have worn that shirt in the past.
Living up to those icons is a big ask and Di Maria is far from the only United number seven to have struggled.
Memphis Depay inherited the shirt from Di Maria but didn’t live up to expectations and neither did Alexis Sanchez.
Edinson Cavani chipped in well but Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to the club didn’t go to plan and Mason Mount has struggled with injuries since taking the shirt.
We aren’t going to say that the number seven is cursed at United, but we also couldn’t blame anybody for thinking it might be!
Di Maria was supposed to join that list of United heroes but it just wasn’t to be, and seeing him win so much silverware before and since his United spell just makes his struggles even more frustrating.
