Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window: Daniel James has a rare distinction in Manchester United’s recent transfer history. Since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, James is the only player the club has signed and later sold for a higher transfer fee than his purchase price
The Welsh winger joined United from Swansea City in 2019 for £15 million and was sold to Leeds United in 2021 for £25 million. That single deal highlights how poorly United have managed their sales in the transfer market compared to other big clubs.
The reality is even more painful when looking at Scott McTominay’s departure. Just last year, the midfielder left for Napoli for only £25.7 million. Ironically, that figure is United’s biggest incoming transfer fee in more than a decade, apart from the sales of Angel Di Maria and Romelu Lukaku, both of which ended in financial losses. Di Maria had joined for nearly £60 million from Real Madrid in 2014 but left a year later for PSG at £44.3 million. Lukaku arrived for £75 million in 2017 but was sold to Inter Milan for £68 million two years later.
These cases underline United’s repeated struggle to make money from unwanted players, especially when compared with rivals like Liverpool and Manchester City. This pattern continues to haunt the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window.
United’s Summer Transfer Dilemma
The Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window is now into its final stretch, and United are once again struggling to move players out. The club has spent almost £200 million on four new signings, Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo, Benjamin Sesko, and Diego León, but they have yet to raise a single pound from sales.
Marcus Rashford’s loan to Barcelona has at least removed his huge £325,000-a-week wages from the books, while small amounts have come through sell-on clauses for Anthony Elanga (Forest to Newcastle) and Álvaro Carreras (Benfica to Real Madrid). But so far, not a single permanent sale has brought in transfer revenue this summer during the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window.
Several players including Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, Antony, Tyrell Malacia, and now even Rasmus Højlund have been available for months. Ideally, United want to bring in around £120 million from these departures, but with time running out before the Sept. 1 deadline, that figure could easily fall to half. Clubs know United are desperate to sell, which weakens their negotiating power in the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window.
For years, United have been paying high wages to players who have not delivered, making them unattractive for potential buyers. At the same time, the club has often undervalued its own homegrown talents. For example, Elanga was sold to Forest for £20 million in 2023 but has just joined Newcastle for £55 million. Dean Henderson left for £15 million to Crystal Palace and has since helped them win the FA Cup, while United still lack a reliable goalkeeper. McTominay, now thriving at Napoli and even earning a Ballon d’Or nomination, was sold for less than Liverpool earned from youngsters who barely featured for them, another painful reminder in the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window.
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How Rivals Are Getting It Right
While United fail to profit from their outgoings, their rivals are proving far more efficient in the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window.
Liverpool this summer sold Luis Díaz to Bayern Munich for £60 million, earning a £10 million profit just two years after buying him from Porto. They also generated £70 million by selling academy products Jarell Quansah, Ben Doak, Caoimhín Kelleher, and Tyler Morton. Even when Trent Alexander-Arnold left for Real Madrid a month before his contract ended, Liverpool still managed to receive £10 million. Last year, they earned £40 million from selling Fábio Carvalho and Sepp van den Berg, two players who barely played for the first team.
Manchester City have also mastered the art of selling smartly. This summer alone, they raised £60 million from the exits of James McAtee, Yan Couto, and Máximo Perrone. More impressively, Julián Álvarez cost them just £14 million from River Plate in 2022 but was sold to Atletico Madrid for £65 million in 2024. The same summer, City earned another £20 million from Taylor Harwood-Bellis’ move to Southampton. These are the kinds of profits United simply don’t see in the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window.
United, on the other hand, have nothing comparable. Instead, they have often been left with players no one wants. David de Gea took a year to find a new club after leaving, Anthony Martial ended up in Greece, and both Victor Lindelöf and Christian Eriksen remain free agents. These realities show the stark contrast in the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window.
Can United Fix Their Transfer Problems?
A source has revealed that before Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS group arrived in 2024, transfer decisions were heavily influenced by the Glazer family. Their approach often backfired: they extended contracts of underperforming players to avoid new signings, but this only reduced their resale value later. By the time United tried to sell, rival clubs knew they were desperate and paid less. This weakness is being exposed again in the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window.
Now, with Jason Wilcox as director of football and Christopher Vivell leading recruitment, United have new leadership in place. Their challenge is clear: make players appealing to other clubs and ensure the club finally learns to sell as effectively as their rivals.
The next two weeks of the Manchester United 2025 Summer Transfer Window will be crucial. What happens with Sancho, Garnacho, Antony, Malacia, and Højlund before the deadline will show whether United have finally cracked the code of smart selling — or whether they will continue to lag behind Liverpool, City, and the rest of the Premier League.
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