Transfers under Erik ten Hag were a pure disaster, with Antony sitting at the top of the list, but the opportunity cost is high too.
It can be argued that a couple of transfer windows under Erik ten Hag were so bad that they condemned Man Utd to financial ruin, which the club is still recovering from.
Spending £85m on Antony is right up there with some of the worst deals of all time, but it sums up his time that a player he didn’t end up buying is now exploding.
This World Cup is becoming a showcase for a player Ten Hag wanted to spend £34m on, but couldn’t.
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Brian Brobbey shining at the World Cup
Brian Brobbey is a name that will be very familiar to Man Utd fans, since he’s a striker who has been linked to the club for the longest time.
He threatened to break out at Ajax for a while but couldn’t quite crack that glass ceiling, mixing some exciting seasons with some difficult ones.
Having earned a move to Sunderland, he finally started showing his qualities in England with a good season.
He has taken that form right into the World Cup, exploding to life with a brace against Sweden for the Netherlands’ 5-1 win.
Brobbey came off the bench to play just five minutes against Japan in their opening game, but showed his manager that he should be a starter against Sweden.
His physicality, ability to link up the play, and streaky finishing make him an ideal knockout stage striker.
Erik ten Hag wanted to sign Brobbey for Man Utd
By the end of his time at Old Trafford, Ten Hag’s fascination with reuniting with his former players almost became a running joke.
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Still, it speaks volumes about his talent ID that the players he didn’t end up reuniting with are turning out to be the ones with the highest ceiling.
Ten Hag wanted to spend £34m on Brobbey when he was having a difficult season at Ajax, but even Utd’s then structure drew a line on that.
He ultimately signed for around £25m with Sunderland, and his value has almost certainly risen since then.
Ten Hag really had a penchant for identifying the wrong players at the right time (Antony for RW), or the right players at the wrong time (Brian Brobbey when he was struggling).
Rarely did the right player meet the right time, and those misfires are costing Man Utd to date.
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