Forgotten Man Utd flop who played once and left with Cristiano Ronaldo saw career go in very different direction

A FORGOTTEN Manchester United flop arrived at Old Trafford with high promise and praise by Sir Alex Ferguson in 2008 but ended up leaving with Cristiano Ronaldo just a year later.

Manucho joined United from Angolan outfit Petro Atletico 15 years ago following a successful three-week trial at Carrington.

Manucho failed to live up to expectations at Manchester UnitedGetty

Manucho left Manchester United on the same year as Cristiano RonaldoGetty

The former striker was scouted by Ferguson‘s ex-assistant Carlos Queiroz but failed to live up to expectations.

Sir Alex said in January 2008: “He is a tall, agile, quick forward and through contacts that Carlos has, was brought to our attention around six months ago.”

However, Manucho never managed to live up to the required standards at Old Trafford.

The former Angola international amassed a mere three appearances, only one of which was at the Premier League against Stoke.

The now 40-year-old registered one assist that helped the Red Devils beat the Potters 5-0 before being shipped out on loan to build up match fitness.

Manucho initially joined Panathinaikos before moving to Hull but failed to stand out for both teams.

That ultimately led to his dismissal from United just a year after putting pen to paper with Sir Alex’s side.

The Angolan took off on the same summer that saw Ronaldo signing with Real Madrid and embarking on a legendary career.

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Manucho moved to Real Valladolid where he underwent two more loan stints to Bucaspor and Maniaspor in Turkey.

But those two loan stints paid off as he became a regular at Valladolid where he registered 104 appearances.

That led to a move to Rayo Vallecano in 2014 where he played a whopping 119 times.

Manucho spent four years at Vallecano and then signed for Spanish third-tier side Cornella before rolling credits on his career in 2019.