I'm old enough to remember Dave Sexton signing Garry Birtles. At £1.25m, he was then United's most expensive signing (breaking the previous record £850k spent on Ray Wilkins). He was signed as a striker from Nottingham Fores and paired with Joe Jordon. At Forest, he couldn't stop scoring goals and had just become an England full international.
Sadly, at United, he went a ridiculous number (I think it might have been over 20 - but I'm not sure) of games before he scored his first goal. Confidence sank and he became a bit of a joke figure.
Birtles was bought to score goals - United had just missed out on the League Title a few months earlier because they just weren't strong enough up front. Ironically, his overall game wasn't that bad but that just wasn't the point. Birtles slightly recovered in the following season and scored a dozen goals but he'll always be remembered as a flop.
I compare with Sanchez. The latter HAS scored a few half decent goals but his overall contribution looks awful. It's as if he hasn't been able to recover from practically downing tools when he wanted to leave Arsenal.
I'm publishing this post because with Lingard and Martial absent over the next few weeks, Sanchez just HAS to turn things around. If he can't do it now, I doubt he ever will for us - in which case I think Gary Birtles can after nearly 40 years finally hand over the title of "Worst Ever United Signing".
Sanchez vs Birtles
posted on 18/2/19
comment by Picasso (U21397)
posted 13 minutes ago
comment by Picasso (U21397)
posted 4 minutes ago
Another one to throw in the mix would be Malcolm Macdonald .... bought from Bournemouth for £200K
I think .... prolific goal scorer at Bournemouth but big st United .....anyone remember him ...( or am I getting him mixed up with the Newcastle Malcolm MacDonald) ?.....
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Sorry ... it was Ted MacDougall ..
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What a div
posted on 18/2/19
Gary Birtles 🥰
My favourite rag back then
Usurped Paddy Roche
posted on 18/2/19
Was Birtles any worse than Terry Gibson/Alan Brazil/Garth Crooks?
posted on 18/2/19
comment by Cornelius Oofterom (U15867)
posted 38 minutes ago
Was Birtles any worse than Terry Gibson/Alan Brazil/Garth Crooks?
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Hmmm... they all came a few years later and were less expensive (at a time when transfer fees were going up). Gibson (along with Davenport) was bought with the Hughes money. By then Ron Atkiinson had lost the plot. Selling Hughes was a blow and the manager just bought several cheaper/poorer players with the receipts.
Brazil was another funny signing! He was great for Ipswich and then Spurs bought him where he completely failed. United signed him from Spurs, I think for the same money that Spurs paid. Nobody was surprised when he failed. Fortunately for Atkinson, the emergency of Hughes as a power meant that Brazil's uselessness went under the radar.
posted on 18/2/19
comment by Kilburn Towers (U13341)
posted 12 minutes ago
comment by Cornelius Oofterom (U15867)
posted 38 minutes ago
Was Birtles any worse than Terry Gibson/Alan Brazil/Garth Crooks?
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Hmmm... they all came a few years later and were less expensive (at a time when transfer fees were going up). Gibson (along with Davenport) was bought with the Hughes money. By then Ron Atkiinson had lost the plot. Selling Hughes was a blow and the manager just bought several cheaper/poorer players with the receipts.
Brazil was another funny signing! He was great for Ipswich and then Spurs bought him where he completely failed. United signed him from Spurs, I think for the same money that Spurs paid. Nobody was surprised when he failed. Fortunately for Atkinson, the emergency of Hughes as a power meant that Brazil's uselessness went under the radar.
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Cor you are going back a few years. did Big Ron sign Brian McClair or was that Fergie? He was another who never really impressed me. He was a striker moved into midfiled if I recall
posted on 18/2/19
mcclair did ok in the end for utd as i remember
veron was rated as one, if not the, best midfielder in world footy , when fergie signed him
him flopping for utd, was a major surprise to me
posted on 18/2/19
I was privlage to one of Birtles few goals. It was at Spurs in he very early 80's. We got beat 3-1
posted on 18/2/19
comment by peks (U6618)
posted 26 minutes ago
mcclair did ok in the end for utd as i remember
veron was rated as one, if not the, best midfielder in world footy , when fergie signed him
him flopping for utd, was a major surprise to me
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Fergie couldn't quite work out how to fit him in to a workable system. Tried a number of ways to fit him in.
Scholes moved further forward into the number 10 position with Veron in CM, with Scholes in CM (Keane as a CB), wide on the right, wide on the left, as a number 10. Nothing seemed to fit without harming the team.
Ironically, I think we got it right towards the end, with a midfield 3 of Veron, Keane and Scholes, with Giggs left and Solskjaer right. Beckham in the bin. Then Veron decided he wanted to leave.
posted on 18/2/19
comment by Cornelius Oofterom (U15867)
posted 30 minutes ago
comment by peks (U6618)
posted 26 minutes ago
mcclair did ok in the end for utd as i remember
veron was rated as one, if not the, best midfielder in world footy , when fergie signed him
him flopping for utd, was a major surprise to me
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Fergie couldn't quite work out how to fit him in to a workable system. Tried a number of ways to fit him in.
Scholes moved further forward into the number 10 position with Veron in CM, with Scholes in CM (Keane as a CB), wide on the right, wide on the left, as a number 10. Nothing seemed to fit without harming the team.
Ironically, I think we got it right towards the end, with a midfield 3 of Veron, Keane and Scholes, with Giggs left and Solskjaer right. Beckham in the bin. Then Veron decided he wanted to leave.
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It's a shame as that year was one the most memorable European campaigns for us in my opinion.
We beat Juventus home and away from memory and was part of that fantastic tie against Madrid in which we were outdone by one of the best performances I have ever seen from an opposition player at OT, Ruud was unstoppable that year too both in Europe and towards the end of the domestic season.
Had we got to the final against a Nedved-less Juve, I reckon we would have beaten them a third time.
posted on 18/2/19
Both Birtles and Jordan liked to drift out to the left, not as a central striker, thus they got in each others way. They shouldn't have been played together, also Gary was a bit overawed I think, didn't get a good start, so found life difficult. He was quite fast, fit, and had decent control, but he was wrong for us.
Not a huge flop though, how about Jordi Cruyf for example. Ted McDougal wasn't given the games if I remember right, which I often don't.