United have been in the mix for plenty of stars over the last five years, but so often they have been left empty-handed
On Wednesday, Manchester United again face one of their most successful acquisitions of the Sir Alex Ferguson era when they take on Cristiano Ronaldo and Juventus in the Champions League in Turin.
But besides being a symbol of United for six years, the Portuguese star has also been one of many players to have foregone the opportunity to sign on at Old Trafford since Sir Alex retired in 2013.
For much of the last five years it has felt like some players have used United as a trading tool, while others simply decided they did not like the sound of being a part of the rebuilding project in M16.
Below, Goal looks at a potential starting XI of players that United couldn’t get over the line in the years post-Ferguson…
Getty1Keylor Navas
Keylor Navas wasn’t entirely sold on the idea of signing for Manchester United as he sat in an airport waiting room on deadline day in August 2015, but he looked set to be the makeweight in David de Gea’s move to Real Madrid anyway.
“I never wanted to leave Real Madrid. My agent told me to be alert to my phone. We had to go to Barajas airport, although I never actually got on the plane,” he explained later.
“I thought that if God wanted me to leave Madrid, it would be for the best, but he didn’t want me to and I’m still here.”
We all know what happened next: a faulty fax machine, a public spat between the two clubs as to why the swap deal had fallen through, a new contract for De Gea, and two Player of the Year awards in three season since.AdvertisementGetty Images2Sokratis Papastathopoulos
The Greek defender’s father claimed after a summer move which saw Sokratis swap Borussia Dortmund for Arsenal that United had also made a play for his son.
“There was interest from United but he had to wait until July for them,” Charalambos Papastathopoulos informed in his homeland.
“United have a very good relationship with Dortmund, the clubs talked, but Sokratis chose to go to Arsenal.”
And with that, the 30-year-old was a Gooner.Getty Images3Sergio Ramos
Like Cristiano Ronaldo, Sergio Ramos has become well known in the north-west of England for his annual flirting with Manchester United in order to get a better pay deal out of Real Madrid.
“At one point I did think about making a change, but at the end of the day my priority has always been Real Madrid and I thought about a change for other reasons,” Ramos told reporters about his not-quite-near-misses with United.
The Reds have been keen on adding him to their side at various points but eventually became wise to the Spain international’s see-through tactics and have steered clear of even getting involved over recent summers.Getty Images4Leonardo Bonucci
One player United’s board did apparently approach is Juventus’ Leonardo Bonucci, whom they face once more on Wednesday.
Having previously been a 2016 target for Manchester City, Bonucci admitted recently that United had also been interested when he returned to Juve from AC Milan last summer.
“Basically, there have been some possibilities both with Manchester City and with Manchester United,” he told the Daily Telegraph.
“This year, when I was told there was a possibility to go back home, to come back to Juventus, I just stopped listening to any other offers and I decided to come back here.”
With that, United were left targeting Toby Alderweireld, Harry Maguire, Jerome Boateng, Raphael Varane, Diego Godin and others as centre-back signings and signed exactly no one.