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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Tyrone Marshall

Antony and Jadon Sancho must do for Manchester United what Paul Pogba couldn't

To peruse a list of Manchester United's record signings is to realise just how much money has been squandered at Old Trafford in recent years.

The first window under Erik ten Hag set a new benchmark for one summer, at around £225million, with Antony now the second most expensive signing in the club's history. Casemiro is seventh on that list and Lisandro Martinez 11th.

But while you could look at a similar list of record buys at Manchester City and Liverpool and see a succession of success stories, that is not the case with United. The last decade is an era they would want to be written out of history when it comes to transfer business.

READ MORE: Chiellini has just disagreed with United fans about Harry Maguire

You probably have to go down to eighth on the list, and the signing of Bruno Fernandes, to find a player that could be listed unquestionably as a success. Paul Pogba tops the chart but his £89million move was a disaster. The World Cup winner underperformed on the pitch and left for nothing. There is no way of sugarcoating that deal.

Two other players in the top 10 list (according to Transfermarkt) have already been and gone at United and it comes to something when Romelu Lukaku is probably the most successful of the trio. Angel Di Maria's one year at the club after signing from Real Madrid was disastrous. Lukaku at least managed two years and 42 goals before leaving for Inter Milan.

United failed to make a profit from any of Pogba, Lukaku and Di Maria, losing around £110m in total when they departed. None of them are remembered fondly. This is the challenge for United's more expensive recruits, to help rewrite a narrative that is threatening to stick to the club when it comes to spending big money.

Harry Maguire is the third most expensive signing in the club's history and while he remains at Old Trafford and is still officially the captain, it's hard to envisage a scenario where that ever looks like £80m well spent. At ninth and 10th, Anthony Martial and Fred do not look like successful £50m signings so far.

The churn at United in recent seasons plays a major part in the lack of clear and obvious successes here. Players signed by one manager for a particular role in a certain style often find a change of leadership happening sooner than expected, with the new manager usually preferring a very different approach. There's been very little joined-up thinking.

Pressure almost certainly plays a part. Being one of Manchester United's record signings will always bring a little added scrutiny, but when you have to carry that price tag around in an era of little or no success, it only increases the spotlight. Every major signing is seen as a key cog in restoring the club to the pinnacle of the game, but that's a heavy weight to carry.

So it is that two of the four most expensive signings in the club's history must prove that you can be an expensive success at Old Trafford. The £85.5m lavished on Antony this summer is a significant gamble on promising potential, but if he's going to succeed he has the right manager in place to do so in Erik ten Hag, who saw the Brazilian's ability at close quarters for two years in Amsterdam.

Antony's debut goal against Arsenal was one way to announce yourself, but he hasn't really impacted the three games he's started so far beyond that. Against FC Sheriff Tiraspol last week, there was a Mancunian cry when he played another square ball of "you're an £80million player, Antony, do something".

He'll be getting more structured guidance than that from Ten Hag but even with his goal against the Gunners, it's been a slow burn for Antony so far.

And just over 12 months into his United career, it's hard to declare Jadon Sancho a £73m success. He flattered to deceive last year but has looked much better under Ten Hag, scoring three times in eight games so far.

While there is competition for places in United's attack, when Ten Hag picks his best front three it seems a certainty it will involve Antony on the right and Sancho on the left. That's £158m worth of wingers in attack.

Antony and Sancho are both 22 and both have time on their side. They could easily be fixtures in this United team for a decade or more. If they can achieve that then there will finally start to be success stories on the wall of fame for the club's most expensive signings. It's certainly a list that needs a little gloss.

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