Man Utd's five most expensive January transfers of all time

Cameron Smith

• 9 Jan 2025 23:00 CST
• 4 min read

Manchester United remain one of the biggest clubs in world football and although they haven’t consistently competed for major honours since Sir Alex Ferguson’s exit, the Red Devils are still huge spenders.

The vast majority of their recent transfer business has been conducted during the summer, but they have still utilised the January window on a number of occasions over the years.

Below, FootballTransfers runs through Man Utd’s five most expensive January transfers of all time.

READ MORE: Man Utd's 10 most expensive transfers of all time

5. Louis Saha - €17.5m (from Fulham, 2004)

Man Utd opted to make Louis Saha their fifth-most expensive of all time in January 2004 following his immense start to the Premier League season with Fulham.

The Frenchman had scored 13 league goals in just 20 games for the west London side and Sir Alex Ferguson pushed to complete a €17.5m deal in a bid to strengthen his forward line.

Saha spent four-and-a-half years at Man Utd, netting 42 goals in 124 appearances and winning four major trophies, before leaving to join Everton in 2008.

READ MORE: Man Utd's 10 biggest sales of all time

4. Amad Diallo - €21.3m (from Atalanta, 2021)

Man Utd made the bold decision to sign 18-year-old Amad Diallo from Atalanta in 2021, despite the fact he had only five senior appearances to his name at the time.

The Ivorian moved to Old Trafford for an initial fee of €21.3m and he spent time out on loan at Rangers and Sunderland before establishing himself as a first-team player at Man Utd.

3. Alexis Sanchez - €34m (from Arsenal, 2018)

After Manchester City withdrew their interest in Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez, the Chilean forward sealed a transfer to Man Utd, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan moving in the opposite direction.

Sanchez left Arsenal having bagged 80 goals in 166 games for the club, but his time at Old Trafford went disastrously.

He failed to adapt to life at Man Utd and after scoring just five times in 45 appearances, Sanchez left the club to join Inter Milan on loan in 2019, and the deal became permanent the following year.

2. Juan Mata - €44.7m (from Chelsea, 2014)

Juan Mata played a pivotal role in Chelsea’s Champions League triumph in 2012, while he formed an immense trio alongside Eden Hazard and Oscar the following year.

However, he fell out of favour upon Jose Mourinho’s arrival in 2013, with ‘The Special One’ unimpressed by his defensive work rate.

Mata subsequently left Chelsea in January 2014, with Man Utd paying just shy of €45m to acquire his services. The Spaniard spent eight-and-a-half years at Old Trafford, racking up 285 appearances in all competitions, before leaving to join Galatasaray in 2022.

1. Bruno Fernandes - €65m (from Sporting, 2020)

Bruno Fernandes is the most expensive January signing in Man Utd’s history, courtesy of his €65m move from Sporting CP in 2020.

The Portuguese midfielder left Sporting after registering 113 goal contributions in 137 games for the club and he instantly hit the ground running at Old Trafford, becoming a key player under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Fernandes then became Man Utd captain in 2023, with Erik ten Hag handing him the armband after a string of impressive performances during the Dutchman’s debut campaign in charge.

Man Utd’s five most expensive January transfers of all time