9 years ago Sir Alex Ferguson called (Fergie)time on his incredible 56 year career in football from his playing days in Scotland to leading Manchester United to countless records and trophies. It’s a legacy which will truly remain unmatched and one that United fans around the world will continue to pine for. What Ferguson is well known for is his eye for talent, picking out a gem and turning them into a world-beater. Whether it’s the class of 92, or bringing Cristiano Ronaldo to the attention of English football fans, he’s had some true greats under his tutelage. And that’s where we come in, as we ask ‘Where Are They?’ of Sir Alex Fergusons last 5 signings before his 2013 retirement.

Are they still playing? Are they now managing? Are they a boring TV pundit? Some are still very much at the top of their game, even after 9 years, while others dropped off significantly after making their way to Old Trafford.

If you have a specific team you’d like to find out more about, or have any additional information regarding the players we are talking about in this piece, let us know on Twitter (@NextGoalWinBlog).

Also why not let us know who was your favourite signing throughout Fergie’s reign and why.

Enjoy.

Shinji Kagawa/Nick Powell (July 2012)

Okay we’re starting off with 2 players, as both ‘officially’ joined United on the same day. It’s fair to say their career’s have gone in different directions since this arrival, but let’s get into them.

First up, Shinji Kagawa, the attacking midfielder who joined United from Borussia Dortmund after United had missed out on Eden Hazard. The fee ranged from £12-17million for the attacking midfielder, and in his time at United, things didn’t always go to plan.

His first season in Manchester was solid as he arrived as Manchester United’s first ever Japanese player, and thrived for a while under Ferguson’s guidance, making a total of 26 appearances and netting 6 goals in his debut season, including a hattrick in a home win over Norwich, becoming the first ever Asian player to do so in the Premier League. Along with breaking these nation-based records, he also picked up the Premier League’s winners medal to round off the season.

As Ferguson departed, and Moyes came in, things went downhill for Kagawa, as despite making 30 appearances, he failed to find the net and even missed a game due to having his stomach pumped after eating too much. It’s fair to say the Ferguson magic had disappeared for Kagawa, and he departed at the end of his second season to return to Dortmund. From here, he spent a further 5 years in Germany until 2019. In this spell, he made 145 appearances and netted 31 goals for Dortmund while also adding a DFB-Pokal trophy to his previous collection.

After falling out of favour in Germany, he spent the remainder of the 2018-2019 season on loan at Beşiktaş before permanently leaving for Zaragoza. 2019 also saw Kagawa play his final game for his national team, ending his international career with 97 caps and 31 goals. After a season for Zaragoza, he moved to PAOK in Greece where he spent 2 seasons, played a total of 12 games and picked up a Greek Cup medal in 2021. In January 2022 he left PAOK to join Belgian side Sint-Truiden where he has made 4 appearances to date.

Nick Powell was supposed to be the ‘new Paul Scholes’ as he joined United, however again things didn’t always go as planned. Making 6 appearances in his debut season, and netting his only goal 11 minutes into his debut in a 4-0 win over Wigan, he failed to make an impression post-Ferguson and began a 3 season spell of being shipped out on loan.

His first loan in 2013-2014 under David Moyes, he joined Wigan Athletic who he scored that debut goal against. In the Championship, he made 41 appearances and netted 12 times across all competitions as he showed signs of the exciting prospect that had attracted suitors in his Crewe Alexander days.

His second loan was at Leicester City in the Premier League, and he could only feature 3 times as they finished 14th just prior to their incredible title-winning season. Following this spell, he left United once again, this time to join Hull City in the Championship where he made 5 appearances.

In June 2016, Powell was released from Manchester United, having made only 3 appearances since his debut season under Ferguson, again proving that the coaches that followed perhaps couldn’t develop Powell in the same was Ferguson may have. He signed for Wigan Athletic where he had impressed previously for his loan spell. Spending 3 seasons at Wigan, he played a total of 99 games and netted 29 goals in an impressive spell which included helping Wigan to the League 1 title.

After turning down another contract at Wigan, he left for Stoke City where he has since spent 3 seasons (to date), playing a total of 91 appearances and scoring 23 goals. In 2021 he was named Stoke City player of the season, and has been a reliable option, however injuries have plagued the current season and hindered his playing time significantly.

Although perhaps not the career trajectory he would have predicted, Powell has kept his career at a strong level and adapted to the various loans and uncertainty faced at Old Trafford. Where many players previously would have continued to go out on loan each and every year, Powell has made a good career at Championship level, although if he had a few more years of Ferguson, who knows what could have happened.

Robin van Persie (August 2012)

After switching allegiances from Arsenal to Manchester United as Arsenal began their ‘sinking ship’ phase, Robin van Persie made the most of his opportunity at Manchester United, bagging his first silverware since the FA Cup win in 2005, as he was crucial in the 2012-2013 league win. Ending the season as Manchester United’s player of the year, nominated in the UEFA top 10 and bagging 30 goals from 48 appearances, the move had already paid for itself. Following this remarkable debut season, and with the departure of Sir Alex, it’s fair to say Van Persie’s experience in Manchester dipped alongside his form.

Under Moyes, he netted 18 in 28 and then the following season 10 from 29. Although United fans still supported, and still support him to this day, the obvious downfall of United post-Ferguson had an impact on all squad members, and Robin van Persie was prime example of this. He departed Manchester in 2015 on seemingly amicable terms, leaving for Fenerbahçe.

Van Persie spent 3 further years in Turkey, playing a total of 87 games for Fenerbahçe and scoring 36 in this time. Although unable to add to his trophy collection, his time in Turkey was still positive for a player coming to the end of their career. Additionally, in 2017 Van Persie played his final international game bringing his international record to 102 caps and 50 goals.

Following his spell in Turkey, he returned to Feyenoord, where he played a further two seasons at his boyhood side, adding another 45 appearances and 25 goals to his totals. In addition he added a KNVB Cup and Johan Cruyff Shield to his collection. In May 2019 he made his final appearance and retired at the end of the 2018-2019 season.

Since finishing his playing career, he has taken part in several punditry roles across Europe, and most prominently has begun a coaching career at Feyenoord as assistant coach, U-16 coach and a striker coach. In recent reports, it’s been rumoured heavily that Van Persie may return to Old Trafford as a coach for potential new manager Erik ten Hag.

Alexander Büttner (August 2012)

Büttner joined United as a potential replacement for Patrice Evra and had impressed for Vitesse in previous seasons. Joining United as a low-key signing, he didn’t really make much of an impact, playing second fiddle to Evra throughout his 2 years at the club. Playing 13 games and scoring twice in his first season, he added to this post-Fergie with 15 more appearances in 2013-2014 before departing for Moscow.

He joined Dynamo Moscow in 2014 after issues over playing time and an alleged disagreement with Van Gaal, and impressed again on his debut season, playing 31 times and scoring once in his opening season. His second season hit a stumbling block when he was loaned out to Anderlecht before returning to Moscow for another short spell. In total he managed a further 6 appearances for Dynamo Moscow along with 16 appearances for Anderlecht before he rounded off his career by returning to Vitesse where he had found success early in his career.

Playing from 2016-2019 back in the Eredivisie, he added a further 56 appearances and 2 goals to his previous 119 and 10 from his early career. In addition, he added a KNVB Cup win to his Premier League winners medal from his spell at United.

Leaving Vitesse in 2019, he signed for New England Revolution for the 2020 season before departing the MLS in July 2021 where he has joined RKC Waalwijk and made 23 appearances in the current season, netting 3 goals and offering 4 assists.

Ángelo Henríquez (September 2012)

Although Fergie’s second last signing, he never played for the first team in his 3 years at Manchester United, being loaned out to Wigan, Zaragoza and Dinamo Zagreb for each campaign. He managed 70 appearances across these loan spells and netted an impressive 37 goals.

Although never to return to Manchester, he joined Zagreb permanently in 2015 where he continued his impressive run, adding a further 92 appearances and 22 goals to his loan spell record.

In 2017 he joined Mexican side Atlas where he spent 2 years, playing 21 times and scoring just twice, before moving onto Chilean side Universidad de Chile where he spent 4 years and bagged 15 goals from 64 games. In 2021 he moved to Brazilian side Fortaleza, scoring 1 from 16.

It’s hard to say much more about a player I’ve honestly never seen play (maybe I need to ask some Wigan fans). Obviously brought to Manchester with some promise, and his loan spell at Zagreb demonstrates this massively, it wasn’t to be in England for the Chilean, however with some impressive clubs in his career and playing 11 times and scoring twice for his country, it’s not a bad career for the 27 year old. He also was a part of Wigan’s FA Cup winning side as well as a Copa America winner along with several league and domestic titles from his various clubs. With a trophy cabinet about as big as Robin van Persie, we must give Henríquez the credit he deserves.

Wilfried Zaha (January 2013)

Arguably one of United’s biggest missed opportunities post-Ferguson, the transfer was completed in January 2013, however with his immediate loan back to Crystal Palace, he never played under Ferguson. Instead he spent the 2012-2013 campaign at Palace where he played 50 times and scored 8 goals as he helped them to promotion to the Premier League.

Being given his first chance in the David Moyes era, he clearly didn’t want Zaha at the club for various reasons (all of which have been rumoured online). When we say ‘given his chance’ he was given 4 runouts where he obviously failed to impress and his chances were taken away. Many have claimed the move came too soon for Zaha, however personally I would put this down as mismanagement in regards to why the move wasn’t successful. Throughout the 2013-2014 season he was loaned out to Cardiff where he played 13 times but failed to score (I forgot that happened too).

In 2014 Palace took Zaha back on loan but quickly made the move permanent for a rumoured £3million which is simply astounding given the run he has been on since. Remaining at Crystal Palace since this return, he has been a talisman for the club and remained loyal despite massive interest from elsewhere. He has made a further 279 appearances at time of writing and scored an impressive 62 goals. Along with this fantastic work for Palace, winning him 3 player of the year awards at the club, he has become a staple of the Ivory Coast national team, switching allegiances from England after their mismanagement of him early in his career.

At only 29 now, it’s likely Zaha will continue to feature heavily for Palace for several years to come, and his loyalty to the club along with impressive performances show clearly that United wasted their opportunity with him at the club. Whatever hypothesis you choose to follow, it’s hard to disagree that had Ferguson had a year or so with him, he could have gone on to greatness at the club and become a genuine world-beater. Once again however, we are left thinking ‘what if’, and the player deserves huge credit for making the brave move to return to Palace and everything that has followed.