When Solskjaer wanted Jude, Declan and Erling

The downfall of Manchester United since the moment Sir Alex Ferguson officially stepped down from his managerial position in June 2013 up to the present day has been the subject of serious and constant analysis by football and economic experts in the UK. Entire books could probably be written about it, because the collapse of the Old Trafford giant did not happen overnight. United’s finances, stature, and reputation have been eroding for years, to the point where the club has now become a mid-table side, far removed from any discussion about challenging for the title or the biggest trophies. There are many reasons for such a dramatic decline of one of the most successful English, European, and global clubs of the late 1990s and the first decade of the 2000s, and the issue is highly complex. However, among the multitude of factors that have led United to look the way it does today, one stands out: interference by people who, fundamentally, know nothing about football.

Solskjaer called United over Haaland back in 2017

The British Sun reveals details of how Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was (in)directly sabotaged by the club, as his wishes in the transfer market were persistently vetoed. Without explicitly naming the person most responsible, it is immediately clear to United supporters and football insiders alike that at the time the alpha and omega of the club’s transfer policy was Ed Woodward—a man close to the Glazer family and someone whom the Old Trafford crowd literally chased out, as his decisions in the market significantly harmed the club.

The fall of Manchester United: academy in the car park, mice at Old Trafford

Specifically, the article explains that Solskjaer’s three main transfer targets were Erling Haaland, Jude Bellingham, and Declan Rice. This was a period when Haaland was still filling the nets at Salzburg, Bellingham had just emerged at Birmingham, and Rice was being touted as the next big thing at West Ham. The club vetoed all three options, pushing the idea that United needed more “proven” solutions—players who could deliver an immediate impact on the pitch. As a result, Donny van de Beek was signed for 39 million euros in June of 2020, Jadon Sancho was bought a year later for 85 million, and Cristiano Ronaldo returned for 17 million that same year. Meanwhile, Haaland and Bellingham joined Borussia Dortmund in 2020, while Rice signed for Arsenal two years later and became one of the team’s most important players.

Amorim: "I change the channel when they talk about Man United — to stay healthy"

As for the three who actually arrived at United, all of them turned out to be outright failures. Van de Beek quickly lost his place in the team and was loaned out to Everton and Frankfurt between 2022 and 2024, before moving to Girona a year and a half ago for a symbolic 500,000. Sancho never fulfilled the potential he showed at Dortmund and has gone down as one of the most expensive mistakes in the club’s history; he is currently on loan at Aston Villa after an unsuccessful spell at Chelsea. Ronaldo, meanwhile, left Old Trafford by burning all bridges in that infamous interview with Piers Morgan.

Bruno: 'Manchester United wanted me to leave'

And of course, there is the inevitable “what if” question. Would United have gotten it right had they signed Bellingham, Haaland, and Rice back then? Would the size of the club and the pressure have swallowed three still-unproven youngsters, or would they have flourished and become the pillars of a completely new team in a new era of trophy-hunting? We will never know. What is certain is that Bellingham, Rice, and Haaland undoubtedly made the best choices by taking the paths they did, while United continues to suffer to this day from countless mistakes and the shopping-spree mentality of people who understand neither football nor business.