Man Utd have profited off just 5 players in the last decade

Manchester United have profited off just five players in the last 10 years, with Daniel James being one of them after his deadline day move to Leeds United.

The Wales international completed a £25m move to Leeds following a two-year stay at Old Trafford, where he made 74 appearances for the club across competitions.

The Red Devils had signed the 23-year-old from Championship side Swansea for an initial £15m, which means they made a tidy profit by selling him to Marcelo Bielsa's side. But the Premier League giants have only made a profit selling four other players over the last decade.

Excited to finally join @LUFC! I'm looking forward to playing at Elland Road in front of the fans and to start this next chapter in my career! See you all after the International break!??⚪ pic.twitter.com/OpRt5z4rTI
— Daniel James (@Daniel_James_97) August 31, 2021

Despite making just 28 appearances between 2014 and 2016, Alexander Buttner was sold to Dinamo Moscow for a £1.8m profit. The Dutchman never broke into United's first-team, and has since played for Vitesse, New England Revolution, and most recently KC Waalwijk.

Another player United made a tiny profit selling was Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez. During a five-year spell at Old Trafford, and scoring 59 goals in 157 appearances, the striker was offloaded to Bayer Leverkusen in 2015 for £7.3m.

Daley Blind joined from Ajax for £16m, and after winning the Europa League and FA Cup, he was sold back to the Eredivisie champions for £18 million. Chris Smalling signed for United in a £7m deal from Fulham in 2010, and was sold to Serie A side, Roma, for £13.6m after spending the 2019-20 campaign on loan.