Top 5 Former Man United Players Still Playing Years After They Left Old Trafford

Top 5 Former Man United Players Still Playing Years After They Left Old Trafford

Fred Kennedy
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:11 PM
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  • Manchester United have played host to some of the best players in the world, including the likes of Wayne Rooney, George Best, and Denis Irwin
  • Whereas some did manage to wound up their careers at Old Trafford, there are those who were eventually offloaded
  • Remarkably, there are a ton of those who played under former manager Sir Alex Ferguson and are still active in the game

Manchester United has been home to some of the world's finest footballers.

While many have had the rare opportunity of turning out for the club until the sunset years of their football careers, others have had to be offloaded at a relatively younger age for failing to make the grade.

Incredibly, there are a number of several of those players who are still playing professional football years after they left Old Trafford.

Bebe, Manchester United, Old Trafford, Sir Alex Ferguson, Rafael Da Silva. Federico Macheda, Lindegaard.
Bebe controls the ball during a friendly football match between AIK and Manchester United in 2013 at the Friends Arena in Solna. Photo: Jonathan Nackstrand.
Source: Getty Images

Sports Brief takes a look at five former Man United players still in the games years after they quit the Manchester club.

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1. Bebe

The Portuguese-born football star hit the headlines in 2010 after Sir Alex Ferguson signed him for Man United.

While he showed flashes of brilliance in his early days at Old Trafford, Bebe had to be released four years later after failing to make the grade.

And eight years on since he left Man United, the forward is plying his trade with Spanish side Rayo Vallecano.

2. Anders Lindegaard

Anders Lindegaard joined Manchester United from Norwegian club Aalesund in 2011.

The Dane went on to make 29 appearances for United, playing second fiddle to David de Gea for the majority of his time at the club before he departed in 2015.

Now aged 38, the shot-stopper is in Sweden playing for Helsingborgs.

3. Gabriel Obertan

Gabriel Obertan spent just two seasons with the Red Devils after he joined them in 2009 from Bordeaux.

He eventually won two Premier League titles at Old Trafford, despite playing just 27 times for the club.

The French winger was offloaded to Newcastle in 2011 and has gone on to have stints in Russia, Bulgaria and Turkey.

He is currently attached with third-tier American side Charlotte Independence.

4. Federico Macheda

Macheda had a dream debut for Man United after he scored in his first match for the club against Aston Villa.

However, that was as far as it went as the forward could only manage just four more goals before he left in 2014.

The Italian went on to play for Cardiff City, Nottingham Forest and Novara after his Old Trafford departure.

He is currently playing for Turkish side Ankaragucu who he joined in July.

5. Rafael Da Silva

And finally, on the list is Rafael Da Silva.

The Brazilian was a fan favourite at the Theatre of Dreams alongside his twin brother Fabio during their seven-year stint at Red Devils.

Upon leaving the club, Rafael played for both Lyon and Istanbul Basaksehir.

At 32, he is back in his home country of Brazil, where he is plying his trade with Botafogo.

Fabio, meanwhile, is in the French Ligue 1 with Nantes.

Lisandro Martinez reveals why he snubbed Arsenal

Earlier, Sports Brief reported Manchester United went head-to-head with rivals Arsenal in pursuit of the transfer of Lisandro Martinez.

The Gunners are understood to have submitted bids to Ajax in order to land the services of the Argentine centre-back.

However, Lisandro snubbed a move to the Emirates Stadium and decided to reunite with Erik ten Hag at Man United.

The 24-year-old has now disclosed that he opted for a move to Old Trafford owing to the club's rich history.

Authors
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Fred Kennedy
Fred Kennedy has a Bachelor's degree in journalism (Daystar University), currently working as a Sports Editor. He has more than five years of experience in digital journalism.
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