Sir Jim Ratcliffe has named five Manchester United players who’re ‘overpaid’ after mistakes in recent transfer windows, including £86m flop Antony.
Ratcliffe became minority owner of United in February 2024 and is now answerable for the club’s football operations, taking up from the Glazer family.
The INEOS chief has opened up about various errors the Red Devils have made, while he has also defended struggling star Joshua Zirkzee.
In an attack on United’s recruitment policy, Ratcliffe has singled out deals for Antony, Rasmus Hojlund, Andre Onana, Jadon Sancho and Casemiro.
United paid £72m for striker Hojlund, while they splashed out £47.2m on goalkeeper Onana and recruited winger Sancho in a deal price £73m.
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Casemiro, meanwhile, joined United from Real Madrid with United paying out £70m to usher in the Brazilian midfielder in the summertime of 2022.
‘f you have a look at the players we’re buying this summer, that we didn’t buy, we’re buying Antony, we’re buying Casemiro, we’re buying Onana, we’re buying Hojlund, we’re buying Sancho,’ Ratcliffe told BBC Sport.
‘These are all things from the past, whether we prefer it or not, we’ve inherited those things and must sort that out.’
The British billionaire has revealed that United still owe payments on some players who the club signed before he became part-owner last 12 months, including £17m for Sancho, who’s currently on loan at Chelsea.
‘For Sancho, who now plays for Chelsea and we pay half his wages, we’re paying £17m to purchase him in the summertime,’ Ratcliffe said.
The five players Ratcliffe mentioned have all received criticism since their respective moves to Old Trafford, with United striker Hojlund widely slammed in recent weeks by supporters and pundits.
Hojlund, who joined United from Italian club Atalanta, has only managed to supply two goals across 23 Premier League games thus far this season.
Onana, meanwhile, recruited from Inter Milan, has made quite a few high-profile mistakes since replacing David de Gea as United’s No.1 ‘keeper.
Antony struggled so badly that United decided to ship him out on loan to Real Betis within the recent January transfer window with Sancho also allowed to depart.
Casemiro has attracted loads of criticism too, with Jamie Carragher suggesting he ought to be playing in Major League Soccer or the Saudi Pro League earlier this 12 months.
‘It takes time for us to maneuver away from the past right into a latest place in the longer term,’ Ratcliffe added.
‘Some should not adequate and a few probably are overpaid, but for us to mould the squad that we’re fully answerable for, and accountable for, will take time.
‘We’ve got this era of transformation where we move from the past to the longer term. There are some great players within the squad as we all know, the captain is a wonderful footballer. We definitely need Bruno [Fernandes], he’s a unbelievable footballer.’
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