Manchester United have seen a number of signings club to the club and under-perform over the years.
When you think of the worst Manchester United signings ever, minds often move to expensive failures like Jadon Sancho, whose underperformance came at a huge cost, because the outlay could have been spent on others.
Alternative responses to the question omits the issue of price. Some players were outright bad, and never cut out for Manchester United, whether they cost £73 million or £7 million.
And no manager was immune to them. Even Sir Alex Ferguson. Which brings us to one of his most bizarre signings ever, £7 million flop Bebe.
Bebe spell at Manchester United
Manchester United’s move for Bebe in 2010 was unexpected, landing a player nobody had ever heard of.
He proved to be an expensive swing and miss. While his fee was a snip overall, it came at time when Ferguson was claiming there was ‘no value in the market’, and then essentially wasted £7 million.
Bebe played only seven matches for Manchester United, a cost of £1 million per appearance, and while he scored two goals, it was clear he was simply not cut out for the club, which was still rich with winners like Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes.
Bebe later claimed it was his own fault for failing at Manchester United, not making the most of his opportunity, and believed he did have what it took to become a success.
To his credit, he has gone on to have a solid career, in Portugal – in which he played alongside Ruben Amorim once, Turkey, and spending the majority of his career in Spain.
Bebe tearing it up in Ibiza
On transfer deadline day in 2025, Bebe clinched his latest career move. He left Racing Ferrol to join UD Ibiza, the 13th club of his career, a team in Spain’s third tier.
Bebe is a player who spent recent seasons playing in La Liga with Rayo Vallecano, even outshining Sevilla loanee Anthony Martial in a 2022 clash.
Lauded by Ibiza as an ‘elite talent’, Cape Verde international forward Bebe has been in sensational form since joining the club.
In three games to date, Bebe has scored three goals, and added a further two assists. Five goal contributions already.
He scored just one goal for former club Racing Ferrol, while his career-best 24 goals for Rayo Vallecano came across 187 appearances.
Dropping down a level has worked wonders for Bebe at the age of 34, proving he knows where the net is.
Perhaps if he came to a goalshy Manchester United in 2025, instead of 2010, he might have stood a chance. Or perhaps not. But it is pleasing to see him squeeze the maximum out of his professional career, and Sir Alex would be proud.