Erik ten Hag splashed the cash during his short stint at Manchester United. Despite only managing the Premier League giants from July 2022 to October 2024, the Dutchman spent a total of £563.4m on new signings, as per Transfermarkt.
The likes of Antony, Rasmus Hojlund, Casemiro, Mason Mount, Leny Yoro, Lisandro Martinez and Andre Onana all joined the club for big money during his tenure.
However, Ten Hag didn’t get all the players that he wanted. In an interview with the Athletic, the Dutchman revealed that he wanted to sign multiple experienced players but failed to do so.
He said: “I think a club like United, you need these profiles to be successful. Personality, and they are mature, and they’re accountable. We signed five, six players, young, high potentials. But they are not the finished product. They need guidance from good professionals.’
The 56-year-old, who is currently unemployed following a disastrous spell at Bayer Leverkusen, then named five players he wanted to sign for Man United but failed to.
Frenkie De Jong
It’s no secret that Ten Hag was desperate to sign Frenkie De Jong from Barcelona. Despite Ten Hag’s best efforts, United couldn’t seal a deal for him.
Ten Hag said: “Everyone’s thinking the manager is doing the negotiations, that I’m involved in financial issues, but I was never.
“Of course, I did my best; I set up meetings with him, where it was Richard and John involved as well, to pursue him to come over. He could have been very important building the team, not only that year but for the future. But we didn’t make it.”
De Jong, considered one of the best midfielders in the world, is still at Barcelona. He has played 297 times for the club since joining from Ajax in 2019.
Declan Rice
After missing out on De Jong, Ten Hag’s attention turned to signing Declan Rice from West Ham United. The east London club didn’t want to let him go, though. He said:
“The issue was that West Ham didn’t want to let him go. I think we could have done more to test. We were on one page, they tried, but I don’t know how the process went. The point is, at United you need outstanding players.”
Arsenal went on to sign Rice in a club-record £105m deal in 2023. He has been worth every penny, helping the club to Premier League glory in the 2025/26 campaign.
Harry Kane
Ten Hag wanted to sign Harry Kane in the summer of 2023, and it was reported that Kane was keen on the move. United went against Ten Hag and didn’t think he was value for money, though.
“I said to them, ‘I want only one player — and you know who’. I fought for it. I heard that he was very positive, but I never spoke with him about the issue. I don’t know how the decision process went with John, Richard, the Glazers. They came to the conclusion. I don’t have the insights in the financials.”
With a transfer to United not possible, Kane made the £100m move to Bayern Munich. He has scored 155 goals in 157 matches for the Bavarian giants and guided them to two Bundesliga titles.
United signed Rasmus Hojlund for £72m instead. The Dane scored just 26 times in 95 matches for the club before making a £38 million move to Napoli.
Fees correct prior to summer 2026
All 10 found — excellent!
Danny Welbeck
Danny Welbeck was a player that Ten Hag wanted to bolster his attacking options. He revealed:
“For sure, we were in contact. Not me, often Darren (Fletcher, then United technical director). And he was very interested.”
The Man Utd academy graduate has been playing the best football of his career in recent years. After scoring 13 Premier League goals for Brighton & Hove Albion in the 2025/26 campaign, Chelsea decided to sign him this summer.
The 35-year-old has found game-time hard to come by since joining the club due to the form of Joao Pedro. Welbeck has scored three times in seven matches for the Blues at the time of writing.
Brian Brobbey
Ten Hag raided former club Ajax for the likes of Antony, Onana and Martinez. He was also keen to sign Brian Brobbey as a backup striker to Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer of 2022, but the club couldn’t get a deal over the line.
“At first, not everyone was aligned. Then we convinced him, but then we were late, and already he was in a different process.”
Brobbey made the move to Sunderland in 2025. He has scored 10 times in 38 matches for the Black Cats.
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