Rio Ferdinand hammers Manchester United’s decision to let FIVE players leave Old Trafford
‘They were the lifeblood’: Rio Ferdinand hammers home Manchester United’s decision to let FIVE players leave following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement and insists Jonny Evans should never have been sold
- Rio Ferdinand has planned Manchester United’s decision to sell certain players
- Ferdinand is unhappy that five stars were allowed to leave Old Trafford
- The former defender was shocked by the decision to move Jonny Evans on
Rio Ferdinand has criticized Manchester United for losing their ‘lifeblood’ after previously allowing five players to leave the club following the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson.
United were last crowned Premier League champions a decade ago in Ferguson’s final season, with Ferdinand playing a vital role in the title-winning side.
The Premier League hall of famer then left Old Trafford after David Moyes’ first season in charge fell through and was later followed out the door by Jonny Evans, Danny Welbeck, Javier Hernandez and Brazilian duo Rafael and Fabio Da Silva.
Ferdinand believes letting members of United’s academy go under Moyes and his successor Louis van Gaal was a mistake.
“They were the lifeblood of Manchester United, they all came through the system, all the Man United boys, and that was lost too,” Ferdinand told his YouTube channel. Atmosphere with five.
Javier Hernandez was sold on to Bayer Leverkusen after Man United sold him
Fabio (right) and Rafael da Silva (left) were moved by United in the years following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement
“That was part of what the club was built on before, people coming through the academy were an integral part of everything Man United stood for.
And they knowingly got rid of those players, I couldn’t believe the club even allowed it.
“What they did at Man United, they could have done for the rest of their career.”
Welbeck was sold to Arsenal for £16 million in 2014 after making 142 appearances in all competitions for the Red Devils, scoring 29 goals in the process.
He went on to strike out 32 in 126 appearances for the Gunners before moving to Watford and now practices his craft at Roberto de Zerbi’s Brighton.
Meanwhile, Hernandez spent a season on loan at Real Madrid before moving on to Bundesliga team Bayer Leverkusen in a £12 million deal, despite United’s lack of strikers at the time.
The Da Silva brothers were also shipped out, Rafael joined Lyon and Fabio moved to Cardiff City.
Danny Welbeck (left) was transferred to Arsenal while Jonny Evans (right) is now with Leicester
Rio Ferdinand believes Manchester United made a mistake by letting five players leave the club
Evans was perhaps the most high-profile name to leave United during a troubling period for the club as he joined West Brom on a permanent contract before moving to Leicester.
Ferdinand explained his surprise at the club’s decision to let Evans go, adding that the Northern Irishman should have kept his place for Chris Smalling.
‘He [Evans] should never have left the club. He was the club’s best centre-back when we all left.
“Smalling has had a great career, don’t get me wrong, but Jonny Evans is a better player, 100 per cent,” he added.
