Manchester United are expected to have a busy summer transfer window in terms of incomings and outgoings for Ruben Amorim.
Ruben Amorim took charge of Manchester United earlier this season but was unable to make any dramatic turnaround after Erik ten Hag’s initial struggles.
There is a certain amount of leeway for Amorim, however, due to various reasons. That includes the fact that this United squad was assembled for Ten Hag.
The Dutchman signed 21 players at Old Trafford during the five transfer windows he was in charge for and major question marks remain over many of those players.
Reports have claimed that United are looking to make many sales this summer, and the latest information from the Manchester Evening News suggests that six players Ten Hag signed could depart in this upcoming transfer window.
Below, UtdDistrict have rated each of those six and their time at United in relation to the expectations when they were signed under the former boss.
Jonny Evans – 7.5/10
Perhaps the strangest signing of the Ten Hag era was when Jonny Evans returned to the team after initially being offered a pre-season contract to remain fit while he found a club.
At first it seemed like the veteran defender would mainly be a voice in the dressing room, an extra leader behind the scenes.
Yet, in his first season back at Old Trafford, the Northern Irish international played 30 games and started 17 of those. In a season where United had a defensive injury crisis, Evans was relied on and performed.
While he has rarely been involved this year, Evans certainly exceeded expectations with his performances last year and could have been considered the club’s best performing centre-back.
The aforementioned report claiming that he is considering retirement at the end of the season, which would end a 17 year career at the top level.
Christian Eriksen – 7/10
Christian Eriksen joined United for free in the summer of 2022 and immediately became a key player for Ten Hag. He built a strong relationship with Casemiro in the engine room.
However, towards the back-end of that debut campaign, a serious injury caused by a reckless Andy Carroll challenge seemed to be a turning point for Eriksen’s time at Old Trafford.
While we have still seen positive moments from talented Dane since then, he has been unable to prove himself consistently in the team, with his lack of physicality becoming a problem at the top level.
Amorim has used him sparingly this term and the 33-year-old admitted that there are no plans for his contract, which runs out at the end of the season, to be renewed.
Altay Bayındır – 5/10
Altay Bayındır was a name that many United fans had forgotten before Amorim took charge earlier this season.
The Turkish goalkeeper was signed in the summer of 2023 but played just twice under Ten Hag, who entrusted André Onana to essentially start all games in all competitions.
In a matter of months under Amorim the 26-year-old played twice as many times for United as he did under the Dutchman and would have likely broken into the Premier League side if it wasn’t for a recent injury.
Nevertheless, it is claimed that Bayındır could look to find first-team football elsewhere in the summer. While he did not play enough to properly showcase his ability, the performance against Arsenal in the FA Cup will always be remembered.
Tyrell Malacia – 4/10
Tyrell Malacia’s life at Old Trafford started well and he looked to be a solid enough option to compete at left-back.
Unfortunately, his nightmare injury saga heavily impacted his United career and he is currently on loan at PSV Eindhoven.
It is stated that the Dutch club have a buy option in Malacia’s contract and United are planning to sell him in the summer.
Due to the low fee United paid for the defender in 2022, his rating cannot be too low, but things simply have not worked out, and that is mainly down to injury.
Casemiro – 7/10
Rating Casemiro’s time at United is a difficult task. He was monstrous during his first season, extremely questionable in his second and much-improved in the third.
Scoring in a cup final, to help win United their first piece of silverware in more than five years, is something people often forget about the Brazilian.
It is certainly not a deal that the club should be looking to do more of, with Casemiro now 33 years old and on extremely high wages.
Yet, it certainly is not one of the worst signings and context should be drawn when discussing his second season at the club.
United are still planning to try and sell him in the summer, and perhaps he could improve that rating if he helps United lift the Europa League before departing.
Antony – 2/10
Antony scored an important goal against Liverpool in the FA Cup last season and also netted an epic goal against Barcelona in the Europa League.
Otherwise, this was one of the worst deals in United’s history. He signed for the club in the summer of 2022 for £85 million.
Ten Hag wanted to sign Antony and it was one of his biggest mistakes at Old Trafford.
Now, Antony is trying to find his confidence once again on loan at Real Betis and the plan is to sell him when he returns in the summer.
If United’s new ownership want a blueprint of deals to avoid in the upcoming windows, they can use Antony’s move as a case study. The club didn’t value him at over £30 million until the panicked in the final days of the window.
Despite a few good moments in Red, it is difficult to say that Antony’s time at the club has been anything over than an entire failure.
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