Manchester United’s season came to an end last month and the club’s 13 different loanees have now all returned.
Not all of the loan deals worked out well, with 16 players sent out on loan in total by United during the 2020/21 season.
As part of our 2020/21 season lookback, we have picked out the best loan deals of the bunch and selected our top seven, counting down to one…
7) Dylan Levitt to NK Istra
Levitt played only nine games on loan at NK Istra, but this was enough to get him into the Wales Euro 2020 squad.
United deserve some credit for this move, finding a club for Levitt after the English transfer window had closed. United took advantage of the Croatian deadline being three weeks later, and found Levitt a club for the second half of the season.
The aim was to get Levitt in contention for the Euros and it worked. He even helped NK Istra reach the Croatian cup final, but missed the game due to injury and his team lost.
6) Di’Shon Bernard to Salford
A loan move to League Two turned out to be the right move for Bernard, who ended up playing under three different managers at Salford.
Bernard played a total of 32 games amassing more than 2,600 minutes, invaluable first team experience for the 20-year-old.
5) Ethan Laird to MK Dons
Laird had a bad start to the season after suffering an injury in his first academy game. It underlined fears United had that he was too injury prone, despite his talent.
So it was a real positive surprise to see Laird adapt to first team football without any fitness issues, on loan at MK Dons.
Laird played 25 games in 2021 alone, providing four assists. He will now likely get a loan at Championship level or higher.
4) Diogo Dalot to AC Milan
Dalot’s move to AC Milan was a little risky because Milan had good options at full-back already.
He did not do enough to really earn a first team shout at United next season, hence the links to Kieran Trippier, but he should have earned his Old Trafford exit, and raise the club some money in the process.
Not all loans are about developing for the first team, others are struck with an aim of eventually generating a fee for players the manager has no plans for. Dalot played 33 games for Milan in total and United could recoup around £10-15 million for him the summer.
3) Teden Mengi to Derby County
How often do you see a 18-year-old centre-back sent on loan to a Championship club and not look out of place?
Teden Mengi is a bright prospect and while he still has to develop and improve his game, the Championship is a good place to learn on the job.
Wayne Rooney is thought to be keen on bringing Mengi back to Derby next season, so Mengi’s loan has been a success there because it sets him up with a pathway for next season too, which United are likely to take.
2) Jesse Lingard to West Ham
Jesse Lingard was outstanding at West Ham and made Manchester United look a little bit silly for not finding a way to get better use out of him.
Lingard thrived in a pressure free environment, scoring nine goals in 16 appearances.
The only reason Lingard is not at number one is because the outcome here for United will simply be a financial gain, rather than the midfielder coming back to improve the club’s first team next season. Lingard and United won’t be short of offers this summer.
1) James Garner to Nottingham Forest
Number one is James Garner, who racked up 41 total appearances at Championship level this past season.
After a decent but unspectacular spell at Watford which predictably fell apart when their manager was fired, Garner was sent to Nottingham Forest instead and impressed right away.
Garner had Forest supporters lauding his every move, and helped his cause by scoring against their rivals Derby.
Forest would love Garner back, but really United should have grander plans for the midfielder than another Championship loan move.
Garner will get the chance to impress for United in pre-season and dependent on transfer moves, could earn the chance to compete in the first team. If that does not work out, then a loan move to another Premier League club should be the alternative.
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