The Glazer family completed their controversial takeover of Manchester United exactly 20 years ago – but how did their first handful of signing sessions in the club work?
It is 20 years since the Glazer family took the reins at Manchester United. The acquisition in May 2005 led to protests of around 300 United fans outside Old Trafford, and even led Bobby Charlton to perform a public apologism for their icy welcome.
Fast forward to 2025, and the family has more than £ 2 billion splashing on transfers in an attempt to secure Premier League and Champions League success, but they still remain a serving bone under the United Faithful.
Despite the fact that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos acquire a minority interest in the club last February, with ambitions to new life through football operations, there is little improvement on the field.
United ended up in eighth place in the 2023/24 season under Erik ten Hag, despite the support of the board, and this season there seems to be even worse with a record low Premier League position looming.
More investments are absolutely necessary in the coming summer transfer window if the board hopes to turn things under the newest manager Ruben Amorim, but it has not always been down and gloomy in the northwest.
Some of the first signing sessions under the new era in Old Trafford actually have great careers with the Red Devils under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Edwin van der Sar – £ 2m
After a four -year -old Stint with Fulham, Edwin van der Sar made a switch to United in June 2005 for a reported £ 2 million. The goalkeeper quickly found his foot in Old Trafford and played every minute of his debut season in all matches, a total of 51 games, reports Manchester Event News.
Van der Sar played an important role in helping United to help the Premier League title in the 2006/07 season, and followed it the following year with a competition, community shield and Champions League Treble-with his skills, especially during a nail-biting European definitive shootout against Chelsea.
With four Premier League titles to his name, Van der Sar said goodbye to United in 2011, after he had made a total of 266 performances. He left the club's best goalkeeper since the departure of Peter Schmeichel in 1999.
In his career after playing, Van der Sar became the marketing director of Ajax in 2012 before he was promoted to the role of CEO at the end of 2016. But in May 2023 he resigned from his position.
Ji-Sung Park- £ 4m
Only one month after Van der Sar's arrival in the northwest, the Red Devils assured the signing of Ji-Sung Park of PSV for £ 4 million. The transfer of the midfielder marked him as only the second Asian player who signed for the club, after Dong Fangzhuo in 2004.
Although Park did not score as many goals as fans had expected, he was an important part of Ferguson's team and played in 45 games in his first season. Although his second year was marred by an injury, he still managed to secure the medal of a Premier League winners after getting five goals in 14 games.
He was also part of the team that achieved the Champions League title of 2008, although he was omitted from the team for the final by Ferguson in a tough call. The most fruitful season of Park came in 2010/11 when he delivered eight goals in 28 games before moving to QPR at the end of the season. He withdrew after returning to the former PSV Eindhoven club for the 2013/14 season.
Park completed his coaching badges when he took the lead on the Under-16 side of QPR as part of his coaching B license. After he had left the West Londoners, Park joined the K League 1-side Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors as their technical director in 2022. There he mentioned former Chelsea star Dan Petrescu as manager, but the time of the Romanian did not last long when he resigned in the middle of the season.
Park then became a consultant at the club, who chose another former Chelsea man in the form of Gus Poyet, as he was announced as a manager last year.
Ben Foster – £ 1 million
Ferguson saw Ben Foster as he played for Wrexham in the Fall League Trophy-final and broke him in for £ 1 million in July 2005. However, his stay in Manchester was short-lived when he was lent to Watford to gain a much-needed experience.
He spent two years on Vicarage Road and made 81 performances before he returned to his parent club in the summer of 2007. A cross union injury ran for about six months, but Foster finally made his United debut in March 2008.
Unfortunately, he did not play a first team match for the rest of the season. After having had a total of 23 games for the club and even winning the League Cup with United Twice, Foster moved in 2010 with a permanent deal to Birmingham City.
Since he withdrew from the game after a short spell with Wrexham, the 42-year-old has put a lot of effort and time in his popular podcast, Fozcast.
Nemanja Vidic – £ 7m
Nemanja Vidic joined the Red Devils in January 2006 in a £ 7 million deal from Spartak Moscow. Ferguson threw him directly into the mix, with his debut in a league match of the League Cup against Blackburn.
The middle behind had a rocky start, in and out of the team during his first six months, before forming a formidable partnership with Rio Ferdinand for the 2006/07 season. This duo has since been praised as one of the most iconic combinations of football.
Vidic played a key role in the victory of the Champions League in 2008 and also took five Premier League titles during his term of office at the club. After making 300 performances for the Red Devils, Vidic said goodbye to United at the end of the 2013/14 season, with 21 goals – an impressive count for a central defender.
After leaving United, 18 months followed the books in Inter Milan, before hunging his boots forever after a series of injury problems that eventually saw his contract ended by mutual permission.
Patrice Evra – £ 5.5 million
Torn between Inter Milan and United, Patrice Evra finally opted for a move to England for £ 5.5 million in January 2006. However, the French full-back had difficulty initially adapting to the English game.
Despite early hik, Evra succeeded in setting out his mistakes and became an essential part of the United Squad, ending his first season with 14 performances under his belt. Although he was not a permanent starter in the 2007/08 season, he still contributed considerably to United's title profit and soon became a mainstay in the team.
Evra waved goodbye to Manchester United for Juventus in 2014, with 10 major awards and 379 performances to his name. In his retirement, Evra has immersed Punditry work for Sky Sports.
Comments