Grading ALL of Man Utd’s Central Midfield Signings Since Carrick

Since Michael Carrick joined Manchester United in 2006 from Tottenham Hotspur, the Red Devils have signed a number of top central midfielders – but who have been the best of the bunch? Today, that’s what we’ll be aiming to find out, as we give each of United’s central midfield signings since 2006 an official Essential Football grade. For the purposes of this list, we’ll only be looking at players who United paid a fee for to sign on a permanent basis. Free transfers, loan signings and academy graduates promoted to the senior team will not be considered.

Furthermore, we will only be looking at natural central midfielders and defensive midfielders in this list – as such, superstars such as Bruno Fernandes won’t be included, even if he has spent some time as a central midfielder for United recently. Owen Hargreaves – D Normally, a player of Owen Hargreaves’ quality would receive a much higher grade, but his injury record at United was absolutely appalling. He made just 27 Premier League appearances for the Red Devils over the course four years, scoring two goals. An excellent player on his day, Hargreaves’ fitness held him back to an immense degree.

Alex Ferguson famously branded him as one of his most ‘disappointing’ signings during his reign at Old Trafford. Anderson – D Another player who often struggled with fitness, Anderson at least managed to make over 100 Premier League appearances for United – though, for many, this was over 100 too many. Anderson came to United with plenty of hype, but he largely failed to live up to it outside of a few flashes of brilliance.By the time he left the club in 2015, most were glad to see the back of him. Marouane Fellaini – C Marouane Fellaini was put into an unfortunate position.

After a summer of so much promise, David Moyes was forced to sign him as a late panic buy, without really factoring where he would fit into his United squad. Technically limited and defensively slack, Fellaini nontheless made up for it with his physicality and peerless aerial ability. Sadly, at the time he was brought in, United fans had expected much, much more. Ander Herrera – A Ander Herrera is the only player in our list to receive top marks – in fairness, United’s transfer dealings have been largely lacklustre in the last 15 years, but this cannot be said of the former Spanish international.

A tenacious, talented midfielder with an eye for goal, Herrera won the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Europa League during his Old Trafford spell. Bastian Schweinsteiger – D Bastian Schweinsteiger is a difficult player to grade. He was already on the downward slide when he joined United – furthermore, following the arrival of Jose Mourinho, his role at the club was greatly diminished. Schweinsteiger made a grand total of 18 Premier League appearances whilst at United, scoring one goal – however, he only cost them £9 million, so it’s hard to call him an out-and-out flop.

Morgan Schneiderlin – C Yet another player whose career was hampered by fitness – Morgan Schneiderlin looked great upon his arrival at United, only for injuries to turn him into a shadow of what he once was. A master of his craft at Southampton, United fans only saw a brief glimpse of this. He wasn’t cheap, either, at £25 million – we nearky gave him a D grade, but the Red Devils were able to recoup most of their losses when they sold him to Everton for £24 million two years later. Paul Pogba – D We suspect Paul Pogba’s grade will vary from person to person, but we gave him a D.

Breaking the concurrent record transfer fee, Pogba simply didn’t set the world alight like many were hoping he would at United. Often looking uninterested, Pogba was a class above when properly motivated.

However, we gave him a D for one key reason – United let him go on a free in 2012, then spent £89 million to correct their mistake. Nemanja Matic – C Nemanja Matic wasn’t past his best when he joined United – he was still in his 20s – but he certainly didn’t look like the same player that he was during his stint at Chelsea. Perhaps we’re being a little harsh, but like many of the other signings in this list, he was very expensive at £40 million. For such a hefty fee at the time, one would’ve expected more from him.

A bog-standard, middle-of-the-road player, Fred certainly wasn’t as bad as some United fans thought he was – but at £47 million, he certainly wasn’t great, either. Often paired alongside Scott McTominay, the pair seldom complimented each other. An energetic box-to-box midfielder, Fred offered little else other than sheer tenacity. Donny van de Beek – F Genuinely, what was the point of this?

Donny van de Beek was a fine player during his prime, but he was used so infrequently at United that they may as well have not bothered. Let us be clear – this grade is not a reflection of Van de Beek’s abilities. He spent four years at United, but only made 35 Premier League appearances during that time. Casemiro – B Casemiro’s United spell had some high peaks, but some seriously deep valleys to go along with them.

Under Ruben Amorim, ina midfield two, he often looked lost – but when played to his strengths, he was fantastic. A B grade seems like the most sensible option. Casemiro was brilliant at times, but he had too many poor showings to receive an A. Manuel Ugarte – D The most recent signing on our list, Manuel Ugarte might well be amongst the very worst.

Whilst an aggressive defender, his technical ability is concerningly limited. Ugarte could easily become an F if he does not improve quickly – following the departure of Casemiro, 2026/27 will be a make-or-break season for him.