11 Players Who Bluntly Declined Chance to Play for Manchester United

• Manchester United is the ultimate no-go zone for majority of world class players in a sad turn of events
• A number of superstars have been linked with the club in the past year, but no deal has materialized
• Here is a look at some of the players who United were interested in but did not sign

In the olden days, players would be willing to join Manchester United in a heartbeat, purely based on the stature of the club.

But years on, things have drastically changed, and United is no longer seen as the destination to be.

More recently, the Red Devils have been searching for midfield reinforcements but their hunt for one has proven futile.

Adrien Rabiot was the most likely to join the club, but the deal dramatically collapsed on Wednesday, August 17 because of the Frenchman’s astronomical wage demands.

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Rabiot’s deal is just one of many that has not amounted to nothing, with stars preferring a move to clubs playing in the Champions League for the 2022/23 campaign.

Here are other players who rejected the chance to come to Old Trafford:

While Dean Henderson is still a Manchester United player technically, the goalie admitted recently that he was desperate to leave the club and not train under Erik Ten Hag

Jurrien Timber, an Ajax defender, also turned down the chance to join United after Louis Van Gaal warned him it would cost him a place in the Dutch squad ahead of the World Cup.

Antonio Rudiger was also linked to United last season, but the German eventually settled for Real Madrid for obvious reasons.

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Another defensive prospect was Matthijs de Ligt, but the defender decided to join Bayern Munich.

In midfield, United almost signed Kalvin Phillips, but the former Leeds man decided to join Manchester City.

He said later that his Manchester United snub was out of loyalty for Leeds.

Perhaps the biggest midfield name linked with United has been Frenkie de Jong.

Despite United pursuing the Dutchman aggressively, he has done little to reciprocate the interest and is keen on playing for a Champions League club.

Benjamin Sesko, an RB Salzburg midfielder, decided to stay in Austria when he had the chance to join Manchester United.

Bayern ace Kingsley Coman also ha links to United but ultimately opted to pen a new deal at Bayern.

Up front, Darwin Nunez was also mentioned in the Manchester United rumour mill in the summer but Liverpool eventually won the race for the Uruguayan.

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Back in 2020, United was also in pole position to sign Erling Haaland. Somehow, the move amounted to nothing, and Haaland went on to join Borussia Dortmund before eventually signing for Manchester City in the summer of 2022.