6 former Man Utd players we can’t believe are currently without a club in 2024
Playing for Manchester United is seen as the pinnacle for many players and you’d be surprised by how many of their former stars are currently without a club.
A player can end up on the free agents pile for a number of reasons, whether it’s down to injuries, personal circumstance or just waiting for the right opportunity to come along.
We’ve taken a closer look at the free agents list and have found six former United players who currently find themselves without a club.
Brandon Williams
It is somewhat surprising that Williams hasn’t found a new club as of writing. The former United star, who made a strong impression in 2019-20 under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, spent last season out on loan with Ipswich Town where he made 17 appearances and scored two goals.
There have been reports of ill-discipline and a lack of focus that has seen William’s career stall, but the 24-year-old remains a very capable full-back, especially in the Championship.
It will surely only be a matter of time before he finds his next club.
Josh Harrop
United’s 100th different goalscorer in the Premier League, Harrop scored on his only appearance for the club – a 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace on the final day of the 2016-17 campaign.
He rejected a new contract offer shortly afterwards and joined Preston North End for an undisclosed compensation fee.
Harrop played almost a hundred matches for the Championship club, but his development was hampered by a serious ACL injury in 2018.
After his release by Preston last year, the midfielder spent short stints with Northampton and Cheltenham Town, but he’s a free agent once again – with no current takers.
Timothy Fosu-Mensah
Fosu-Mensah failed to build on a promising debut season at United and joined Bayer Leverkusen in a £1.8million deal in January 2021.
“It was difficult because I ruptured my ACL after my loan spell at Fulham,” Fosu-Mensah said after joining Leverkusen. “I was out for a long time. I came back, [Ole Gunnar] Solskjaer gave me the minutes, they triggered the option in my contract.
“Solskjaer’s been good to me but at the end I was not playing a lot and obviously, when you’re 22, 23, 24 you need to be playing.
“I didn’t play much and I wanted to play, and I think it was the best decision in the end for me to go somewhere else where I would get more minutes.”
During his sixth Bundesliga appearance, the defender suffered another anterior cruciate ligament injury which hampered his chances of success in Germany.
Fosu-Mensah was released by Leverkusen at the end of the 2023-24 season and has been unable to find a new club since.
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Cameron Borthwick-Jackson
Borthwick-Jackson made his debut under Louis van Gaal way back in November 2015 – a 2-0 victory over West Brom in which Jesse Lingard scored his first goal for the club.
The left-back made a further 13 appearances as a fringe player in Van Gaal’s second season before he undertook a nomadic career elsewhere, representing five clubs on loan and eventually signing for Oldham Athletic as a free agent in 2020.
Spells with Burton Albion, Slask Wroclaw and Ross County have followed, but the 27-year-old is currently without a club.
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Devonte Redmond
During the 2015-16 season, six-foot-two midfielder Redmond was the joint-highest appearance maker for United’s Under-21s.
He never made it to the first team and was let go in 2018. Cruelly, United never warned him about his impending release.
“It had been posted on Twitter… the official ‘retained and released’ list,” he told The Athletic. “And that was how I found [out].”
Spells at Salford, Wrexham, Kidderminster and Gulf United have followed, but the 28-year-old is currently unattached.
Tyler Blackett
Blackett was one of Van Gaal’s favoured options back in the day, making 12 appearances in 2014-15 and being tipped to become a “great defender” after signing a new deal in 2015.
But a loan spell at Celtic proved unproductive the following season and Blackett was then sold to Reading, where he made over 100 appearances before leaving the club in 2020.
He spent the 2020-21 season at Nottingham Forest before moving to America, joining MLS side FC Cincinnati for two seasons, and returning to England to sign for Rotherham United.
The 30-year-old defender is currently unattached after the Millers’ relegation in 2023-24.