Rio Ferdinand claims Manchester United made a mistake after Sir Alex Ferguson retired by selling Jonny Evans, Hernandez and Danny Welbeck.
The Red Devils sold Evans in a £6m deal to West Brom in 2015 – a decision which Ferdinand described as a ‘travesty’ as he feels the player was the best centre-back at the club at that time.
Hernandez, meanwhile, struggled to make any impact after David Moyes took over from from Ferguson as manager and ended up leaving United to join Real Madrid on a season-long loan in 2014.
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Welbeck left United in 2014 under Louis van Gaal, and the Dutchman claimed at the time that he ‘doesn’t have the record of [Robin] Van Persie or [Wayne] Rooney’.
And Ferdinand says United’s decision to sell took away the ‘lifeblood’ of the team.
‘One of the big things they messed up on… they sold the Da Silva twins, they sold Welbeck, they sold Chicharito, Jonny Evans, all in a short space of time,’ Ferdinand said on Vibe With Five.
‘They were the lifeblood of Man United, they all came through the system, all Man United boys, and that was lost as well.
‘That was a part of what the club had been built on before, people who would come through the academy were integral to everything Man United stood for.
‘And they were getting rid of those players willy-nilly, I couldn’t believe the club even allowed it.’
Asked if those players were good enough to continue at Old Trafford at the time of their exit, Ferdinand replied: ‘Yeah.
‘Welbeck’s good enough now, Chicharito 100 per cent, Rafa and Fabio Da Silva, what they did at Man United they could’ve done that for the rest of their career, 100 per cent.
‘Jonny Evans was one of the biggest travesties in that time to have left. He should never have been allowed to leave the club. He was the best centre-half at the club when we all left.
‘[Chris] Smalling’s had a great career, don’t get me wrong, but Jonny Evans is a better player, 100 per cent.’
