Manchester United are no strangers to criticism when it comes to recruitment.
It is no secret that Manchester United have struggled following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, which, of course, was not helped by the fact that the Glazer family has owned the football club since their controversial takeover in 2005.
This has led to many issues on and off the pitch, but it hasn’t helped that the team has struggled to perform and reach previous heights.
There have been several managers since Ferguson retired – from David Moyes and Jose Mourinho to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Erik ten Hag.
It’s now the responsibility of Ruben Amorim as head coach to change United’s fortunes on the pitch. The Portuguese tactician will hope Ineos support him in the transfer market by adding better players to the underperforming squad.
Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
Man Utd must learn from Sadio Mane mistake by signing Bryan Mbeumo
After missing out on many players in the past decade, there are a lot of cases of ‘what might have been’ at Old Trafford.
The recruitment down the years hasn’t been good enough with figures like Ed Woodward and Richard Arnold blamed for not delivering primary targets for previous managers.
In an interview with FourFourTwo, Van Gaal revealed that he failed to get several primary targets to United, including former Southampton and Liverpool star Sadio Mane.
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“I wanted to have quick wingers,” Van Gaal explained. “For that reason, I also tried to get Sadio Mane.”
Van Gaal’s request to sign Mane from Southampton was overlooked, and he went on to sign for Liverpool in a deal worth £36 million, before firing the Merseyside outfit to Premier League and Champions League glory.
Mane went on to score 120 goals in 269 games at Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp.
The Senegal international left for Bayern Munich in 2022 and is currently playing his football at Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia.
However United must learn from previous mistakes, such as the one they made with Mane.
An example of this would be signing Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo.
Bryan Mbeumo becomes the 7th African international to score 20+ goals in a Premier League season, joining:
▪️Mohamed Salah
▪️Didier Drogba
▪️Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
▪️Emmanuel Adebayor
▪️Sadio Mané
▪️Yaya Touré
A true Premier League star 💫 pic.twitter.com/YJFdUMhxOZ
— ESPN Africa (@ESPNAfrica) May 26, 2025
View Tweet
It is understood that Mbeumo is prioritising a move to United, despite attracting interest from Newcastle, Tottenham and Liverpool.
The Cameroon international enjoyed his most prolific season yet in the Premier League, scoring 20 goals as Brentford’s top scorer.
United and Brentford are trying to negotiate a deal, while some reports claim Mbeumo is demanding a £250k a week deal to leave his current club.
Like Mane at Southampton, Mbeumo is on the rise and United must ensure they don’t miss the boat after doing so with too many talented players in the past.
Mbeumo’s goals could make a huge difference at United next season, along with the addition of Matheus Cunha.
Morgan Schneiderlin’s attempt to bring Mane to Man Utd
Van Gaal spoke to his players about trying to sign Mane, including Morgan Schneiderlin, whom he brought to United from Southampton.
Schneiderlin later revealed he tried to get Mane to United after having a conversation about the player with Van Gaal.
“From the first day, you could see that he had something about him,” Schneiderlin said.
“It took him a bit of time, a few months, to get really going. And then as soon as he started to score some goals, it was game over. It was amazing.
“I remember Louis van Gaal asking me about him coming to Man United,” the former United midfielder said. “I tried my best for him to come as well. But he wanted to stay one more year and go to Liverpool.
“I think the choice that he made was amazing. He arrived in Liverpool squad that was just untouchable at the time.”
It’s a shame how things worked out because United ended up signing players like Jadon Sancho and Antony, who both turned out to be flops.