In the history of football, not every striker can shine and leave a mark in the hearts of fans. Besides the great legends, there are also many players who were highly expected but caused great disappointment. Although they played for famous clubs, they could not show their worth, becoming failed contracts. From stars under heavy pressure to players who are completely unsuitable for the team, the list of worst strikers in football shared by Bestsoccertips below is a clear proof of the harshness of the king sport.
Top 10 worst strikers in football
Top 10: Dion Dublin
Dion Dublin, a former England striker, was signed by Sir Alex Ferguson from Cambridge for £1 million in 1992. However, Dion’s career at United was not as successful as expected. Dublin only played one season for the team, mainly coming on as a substitute. His most memorable moment was a stunning last-minute goal in his fourth game against Oldham Athletic, which won Dublin the hearts of the fans.
Unfortunately, a serious injury kept Dublin out of action for the entire season. Despite his strong physique and good aerial ability, the former England international was unable to compete for a starting spot with the likes of Mark Hughes, Eric Cantona and Brian McClair. Dublin scored just one goal in his short time at United before moving to Coventry City in 1994.
Top 9: Diego Forlan
Diego Forlan joined Old Trafford in 2002 from Argentine club Independiente for £7m. However, the Uruguayan striker’s career at the Red Devils did not start smoothly. Despite his good finishing ability and impressive individual technique, Forlan struggled to adapt to United’s style of play and failed to score consistently. In the two seasons from 2002 to 2004, he scored just 10 goals in 63 appearances.
However, Forlan did leave behind some memorable moments, including a brace against Liverpool in the English derby. However, due to not being able to compete with top strikers like Ruud van Nistelrooy, Sir Alex Ferguson decided to sell Forlan to Villarreal in 2004. Here, Forlan flourished and became one of the best strikers in La Liga, winning the Pichichi (Top scorer in La Liga) award in the 2004-2005 and 2008-2009 seasons.
Top 8: Peter Davenport
Peter Davenport joined MU in 1986 from Nottingham Forest for a record transfer fee of 750,000 pounds, at that time. As a striker with good technique and intelligent movement, Davenport was expected to be a valuable addition to the “Red Devils” attack. However, his career at Old Trafford was not very successful.
In the 1986-1987 season, Davenport took 10 games to score his first goal. This made Peter unable to compete with key strikers such as Mark Hughes, Norman Whiteside or Bryan Robson. After only one season, Peter Davenport decided to leave Old Trafford to play for Real Sociedad in La Liga.
Top 7: Joshua Zirkzee
The Dutch rookie had a good start with a goal in his debut match against Fulham in the first round of the Premier League. However, Zirkzee’s form quickly declined, causing him to be booed by MU fans on the field in the 0-2 loss to Newcastle.
Along with that, previous poor performances showed that Zirkzee’s time at Old Trafford could end soon. Speaking about the decision to take Zirkzee off in the 30th minute of the match against Newcastle, Ruben Amorim said: “I felt that Zirkzee’s mentality was affected by the pressure from the stands and the team was lacking a midfielder, so I took him off for tactical reasons.”
Erik ten Hag signed Zirkzee in the summer of 2024 for £36.5 million. However, after 23 rounds in the Premier League, the striker has only scored 3 goals – a number that is not enough to convince the “Red Devils” fans to wait patiently. Given this situation, Zirkzee is said to be looking to leave Old Trafford in the winter transfer window.
Top 6: Odion Ighalo
Odion Ighalo was brought to Old Trafford in January 2020 on loan from Shanghai Shenhua (China) in the context of the red half of Manchester lacking strikers in the winter transfer window. Right from the first matches, Ighalo made a strong impression with excellent form, scoring 5 goals in 23 appearances in all competitions.
Notably, one of the most memorable moments of the Nigerian striker was the goal in the 5-0 victory over LASK in the round of 16 of the Europa League 2020-2021. Although not the main choice in the squad, Ighalo still proved to be reliable when given the opportunity, contributing to the stability of the team’s attack. After his loan ended in January 2021, Ighalo returned to China to continue playing for Shanghai Shenhua.
Top 5: Ted MacDougall
Ted MacDougall joined Manchester United in 1972 from Bournemouth with high expectations, especially after impressive performances at previous clubs. He was known for his sharp goalscoring ability and once attracted attention when he scored 9 goals in an FA Cup match for Bournemouth. This excellence helped MacDougall attract the attention of many big teams, and Manchester United decided to recruit him to strengthen their attack. However, his career at Old Trafford did not go as expected. Although highly regarded for his scoring instinct, MacDougall had difficulty adapting to the team’s style of play and could not compete for a regular place with famous strikers such as Denis Law and Brian Kidd.
In the 1972/73 season, MacDougall made just eight appearances in all competitions but still managed to make an impact with five goals. Despite his impressive goalscoring record, he was largely a substitute. The lack of opportunities meant that MacDougall failed to realise his full potential at Manchester United. After a short season and a lack of opportunities to establish himself in the first team, he left Old Trafford for West Ham United in the hope of more playing time, continuing his quest to regain his form and establish himself.
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Top 4: Garry Birtles
Under manager Dave Sexton, Gary Birtles made his Manchester United debut on 22 October 1980 in a 1–0 win over Stoke City at the Victoria Ground in the First Division. Before joining the “Red Devils”, Birtles had made a strong impression for Nottingham Forest, especially in European competitions. It was his excellent performance that made Manchester United decide to recruit him with the hope of strengthening their attack. In his first season at Old Trafford, Birtles made a total of 28 appearances but failed to show the expected scoring form.
Birtles’ last match for Manchester United was on the last day of the 1980/81 season, when the team won 2-0 against Stoke City at Old Trafford. Although he continued to stay at the team and started the 1982/83 season, he was not appreciated and gradually lost his place in the first team. After an unsuccessful time at Manchester United, Birtles decided to leave the club with a record of 11 goals in 58 appearances. He returned to Nottingham Forest, where he made his name and continued his playing career there.
Top 3: Radamel Falcao
Radamel Falcao joined MU in the 2014-2015 season on loan from AS Monaco, with the expectation of becoming the team’s main striker. However, the Colombian player encountered many problems with injuries and form, seriously affecting his career at Old Trafford.
During the season, Falcao only scored 4 goals in 29 matches in the Premier League. At the end of the season, the board of directors decided not to activate the clause to buy Falcao and pushed him back to AS Monaco. The reason is said to be that coach Louis Van Gaal was not satisfied with the training attitude as well as the playing condition of this player, who received a salary of up to 265 thousand pounds per week.
Top 2: Wout Weghorst
Once an underrated player at Burnley, Wout Weghorst was trusted by coach Erik ten Hag to loan to Manchester United to solve the problem of lacking a striker. However, this 1m98 tall player has disappointed when he did not score any goals in 17 matches in the Premier League.
Although he won the Carabao Cup with the team, Weghorst’s ineffectiveness clearly reflected the difficulties in finding a solution for the Old Trafford team’s attack. Because of his limited scoring record, the Dutch striker was ranked 2nd in the list of the 10 worst strikers of the “Red Devils”.
Top 1: Alexis Sanchez
Alexis Sánchez joined MU in January 2018 in a surprising swap deal, when the “Red Devils” exchanged Henrikh Mkhitaryan to Arsenal and received the Chilean striker. The deal made fans expect that Sánchez would be the “Red Devils'” next big star, especially after impressive seasons at Arsenal, where he scored a total of 80 goals in 4 seasons and became one of the best players in the Premier League.
However, Alexis Sánchez’s career at MU did not go as expected. Although expected to add attacking power to the team, the Chilean striker had difficulty finding consistent form. In 32 matches, he scored only 3 goals before moving to Inter Milan.
Sanchez is a clear example of how stars cannot fully develop their talents when they are not suitable for the team. This list shows that, even a great team like Man United, they cannot avoid failed deals, especially in the striker position. From unfortunate injuries to poor performance, these names have failed to shine in the “Red Devils” shirt, leaving a faint mark in the club’s history and having to leave with the title of “worst striker” to ever wear the MU shirt.
Final Thoughts
Football is full of surprises, and not every player can live up to expectations when they move to a big club. Strikers who were once expected but failed to make the grade show that talent is not always enough to succeed—environmental factors, tactics, and mentality also play a role. While the worst strikers in football above may have disappointed at one club, some still found opportunities to shine elsewhere, such failures are always lessons for both players and teams when recruiting new players.
See also: Ranking the 10 worst midfielders in Premier League history
